


Starlight

by ItsJustForce



Series: Bucky Barnes Deserves to be Happy [1]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: And then it sorta, Bucky Barnes is a Dork, Bucky Barnes is a little touch starved, Canon Compliant at first, Canon-Typical Violence, Eventual Fluff, F/M, Hopefully the Avengers aren't too much out of character, Not Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, Not Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Compliant, Protective Steve Rogers, Slow Burn, Tony Stark is a bit of an asshole, Wanda Maximoff Helps Bucky Barnes Recover, at least at the beginning, just let people be happy marvel, skews off
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-01
Updated: 2019-04-22
Packaged: 2019-10-01 14:08:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 29,900
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17245592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ItsJustForce/pseuds/ItsJustForce
Summary: Alex Harper is a woman haunted by her past with badass skills, superhuman abilities, and wit to make up for it. Never known to back down from a challenge she had steadily climbed the ranks through her time in S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy and quickly became the leader of her own S.H.I.E.L.D. unit. She's efficient, seemingly ruthless, and even has a metal prosthetic of her own. But after being inducted into a "trial period" to see how she'd work alongside the Avengers, she unwillingly catches the eye of a certain metal armed super soldier. With lots of questions of her own abilities unanswered and a sudden threat emerging bringing faces new and old to the fray, would there be a chance for romance?





	1. Introductions

**Author's Note:**

> The title is based off of Starset's song "Starlight", which you should listen to because it's swell. :)

The Avengers are sat at the large conference desk, most talking amongst one another with mixed emotions radiating off them. The sound of the door opening snaps their attention to it, them watching as Hill and Fury walk in with Maria holding a stack of files.

"I'm gonna cut this short. S.H.I.E.L.D.'s had a new specialized task force up for a while handling people who are dealing in alien tech, and for some reason Ross wants to implement them into the Avengers as some subgroup or something. He wants you all to speak with the squad leader and get the best course of action for how you'll be working together, make the unit feel welcome since you will be working with them. The squad leader though, she's a bit hard to get along with, so can either take it or leave it." Fury states, Maria placing the files on the table.

"I mean, we deal with Tony all the time, so it really shouldn't be hard." Natasha states in monotone, Tony giving an indignant squawk in protest before her glare shuts him up. They each take one, looking over the file with some semblance of interest until Steve's eyebrows raise.

"Alex Harper, huh? What more info can you tell us about her? What you've got here is pretty vague." He says, looking up to Fury with genuine interest.

"Well, we've got her classed as an omega level mutant due to her enhanced abilities and her powers of elemental manipulation. Besides the fact that she leads this new task force she works robotics and handles any and all alien tech we get our hands on. Much else we were asked to keep private by Harper herself. She's a strong fighter, but she has a bit of an... aggressive attack style with all she can do." Maria states, Sam leaning forward.

"How aggressive are we talking?" He asks, Maria looking to Fury for him to nod.

"Just during her time at the Academy she put over 50 other students into the infirmary during her time spent in sparring matches. She's powerful, more than we hoped, but we've been informed there's more to her powers she has yet to discover. We want to get her on board with the Avengers Initiative at some point, but we need ample people to properly train her and get a feel for what you all would possibly be working with. Hence why we wanted to bring you all on board. We also need her to get on Ross's good side, but you didn't hear that from me." Hill ends, the group looking at their folders. Thor looks at Maria.

"Would you happen to have a better picture of Lady Alex's features?" He asks, Maria nodding. It's a photo of Alex talking animatedly to an older gentleman with greying blond hair in a café of sorts. Her dark golden brown hair is tied up in a loose bun, full lips pulled to a grin and cheeks dusted pink. The things to point out were the heterochrome eyes, sparkling in the sunlight beaming through the wide café windows, the left pale green/grey and the right crystal blue, and the slightly pointed ears that are far pointier to human standards. Everyone watches as Thor surveys the image before realization washes over his face. Thor leans back in the chair, seemingly lost in thought.

"Oooookay then, moving on." Tony states, rubbing his hands together.

"I'm personally not going to touch that whole fighting thing the kid does with a ten-foot pole, I do enjoy my beautiful features after all. But, I am willing to negotiate an alternative to your plan." Tony says, Fury's eyebrows furrowing.

"And what would that entail." He asks, seemingly annoyed.

"We meet her, but we have her work in the labs with Bruce and I, let her handle any robotics shit I don't have time to get to. Which is a lot. And we can see how she works in that setting before moving from there. Physical training is one thing, being able to work with a team that isn't your own is another. Call it what you will, but if she's gonna lead a team she needs to know how to work with anybody. Plus, I could be her lab supervisor, have F.R.I.D.A.Y. take evaluations or whatever." Tony says, Fury silent as he contemplates the idea.

"I'll need to consult with some people first. It's taking a lot just to keep her in our hands here at S.H.I.E.L.D., I can't imagine how they'd react to her transferring to your care.

"When do we get to meet her?" Wanda asks, a bit of excitement lacing her tone.

"She's currently out on a recon and retrieval mission, she'll be back in a few days. Until then, we'll be in touch about the decision for Stark's proposal. You're dismissed."

-

  
It took two weeks until Fury called, saying everything was in order for Stark's plan. Alex had arrived back from her mission at some point last week, and they were surprised to find out she was so damn hard to find. She seemed to hold a routine to her days at the Facility that didn't match with their own, and to say Bucky wasn't trying to see where she'd be hiding would be a lie. He was intrigued the moment he saw that dark metal prosthetic, and it didn't hurt she was quite the looker either.

It was team training day when Fury and Maria came waltzing in, Fury exuding his usual commanding presence a little heavier than usual.

"Today's the day, ladies and gents. She should be on her way here as we speak, so you either do what you usually do or just wait to meet her." Maria says, Thor setting her weights aside to stroll and stand nearer to the door. Bucky continued his jog, having not really heard Maria with his headphones in his ears. A few minutes pass before Thor's booming voice cuts through his peace. He takes out a headphone and looks in the mirror ahead of him to almost fall off the treadmill he was running on. Alex walks towards Thor with a smirk, Thor finishing his statement by introducing himself and sticking out his hand. Her dark golden brown hair was down from her seemingly usual ponytail, her slightly wavy tresses cascading down her torso for the ends to stop just below her breasts. She looks like she came in from the city, her olive green jacket on her left arm and gloves in her bionic hand. She wears a crimson sweater, a grey scarf, black jeans, and black combat boots.

"Well if I didn't know any better I'd think you'd be inviting me to Asgard with that type of greeting." Alex retorts jokingly, taking Thor's hand and shaking it. Rolling thunder shakes the building, and the Avengers watch as Thor's grin only grows wider.

"Can I not treat a fellow God, or should I say Goddess, with a welcoming she deserves?" Thor asks, it taking a moment for those words to settle before shock ripples through the room and Alex pales.

"Goddess?" Sam asks, Alex looking to Fury with a cold, unreadable expression.

"Uh-" She states, eyes flicking to Thor as a gesture.

"You are not able to sense her strength?" Thor asks, head tilting slightly.

"She just walked in, Point Break. The cue we got was your rolling of thunder and you saying she's some goddess." Tony says, Thor looking to him.

"Brother Tony, that thunder was not my doing. The Creator has been oozing her proof of strength the moment she stepped onto the premises, that was merely a... show of strength if you will." Thor says, turning to Alex and lightly slapping her arm.

"You would think they would be able to recognize such an archaic being." He mutters, Alex's face turning pink as she gives him a "would you please shut the fuck up" look.

"They also aren't gods, Son of Odin." Alex hisses, Thor smirking.

"I am aware, but if Fury was able to recognize your talents he must have known." Thor says, looking to Fury.

"I... We had reports of the supposed legends, yes." Fury says, Alex looking to him with an eyebrow raised.

"My mom really spilled that much?" Alex asks, and she'd almost seem horrified if it weren't for her level tone.

"Hold on!" Tony snaps, Alex looking to Tony with the same expression on her face she gave Fury.

" _You_ are a goddess?"

"Well, uh, sort of? Not really... It's, uh, a bit of a long story." Alex says, scratching the back of her neck shyly.

"Wait, Thor, what did you call her?" Steve asks.

"The Creator. She was the being thought to be created by the One-Above-All to create the universe with her brother, The Destroyer. It's a very long piece of lore and occurred far before my family's time, but we still respect both as the higher power even if we've never seen them. Whoever dare challenge them is against a formidable foe, from what I've been told." Thor turns to her.

"Your mother told me this day would come, but I never imagined it would have been so soon. It is truly an honor to be fighting by your side." Thor says, patting her shoulder. She sways slightly with the force of the pat, Thor moving away to walk out of the training room. Alex turns to the rest of the group to see they're all looking at her, some sizing her up while others are just shocked.

"Anyway, uh. I'm Alex, as I'm sure you're aware, and I'm looking forward to working with you all. If you have any questions about... I suppose literally anything since the cat's out of the bag, don't be afraid to ask." Alex says awkwardly, looking to Fury and Maria.

"Can I go now? I did what you wanted." She asks quietly, Maria giving a small sigh before gesturing to the door with her head. Alex all but sprints to the door, throwing on her jacket and her left glove before the door closes behind her and Maria.

"And when were you going to tell us that?" Sam asks Fury, Tony pointing to him with an annoyed look on his face.

"Ms. Harper asked we withhold the information until she herself was prepared to disclose it. It's not something she wants spreading around the compound, nor is it something she's proud of." Fury responds coolly, Bucky stepping off the treadmill to look at Fury in confusion.

"Why? I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm not a mind reader like Wanda but isn't being a goddess a title to wear with some semblance of pride?" He asks, Fury looking at him showing barely any semblance of emotion.

"She'll be working in her lab, Barnes, why don't you ask her yourself?" He asks, before turning and walking to the door. He stops in front of it before turning back and looking at Tony.

"I told you, she's got warning labels. She's complex and especially difficult to figure out, but still you wanted to handle her on your own. If you want out, Stark, you'll know where to find me." Fury muses before he opens the door and departs, Tony's eyes widening in shock at the challenge before competitive anger fills the gaze.

"We'll see." Tony snaps, his eyes narrowed. "We will see."


	2. Consultation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bucky gets his chance to talk face to face with Alex, but it's in a sort of "consultation" about his arm. Well... Beggars can't be choosers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to ZeroEnderborn for being my spectacular Beta and sitting through the ramblings of dumb shit I've made and thought up for this fic. You da best, homie and I love ya lots. 
> 
> Also, I drew the art in this chapter with a trackpad. I feel very proud of myself for it.

It'd been only four days and word has already spread and dissipated throughout the compound about Alex's reassignment to the Avengers sector, and Bucky was less than pleased with the responses he'd heard from agents and his own teammates. According to F.R.I.D.A.Y. Thor and seven others, including Alex and Fury, have been in Alex's designated lab for the past hour doing God knows what, and it was obvious the team was antsy.

"Who just blocks access to a lab that isn't fully theirs? It's bullshit, I tell you." Tony snaps, his small amount of patience obviously worn thin.

"Sir, I'd like to remind you that while you may have helped fund the building of the facility, Director Fury and Agent Hill run everything, and they've given Ms. Harper free rein to do what she'd please with the space. Locking the doors is included." F.R.I.D.A.Y.'s voice chirps, causing Tony's eyes to roll.

"Why does Thor get to be in there? What, are they holding some secret meeting with him or something?" Sam asks, crossing his arms and slouching back in his chair. Tony gasps and points at him.

"He did act super weird when Hill brought up Alex's picture!" Tony states excitedly, and with a roll of his eyes and an annoyed huff he lifts himself off the barstool he was sat on and walks out of the combined kitchen/common area. He hears light footsteps rush to meet his walk before he looks over to find Natasha.

"Not one for gossip, huh Barnes?" She asks, looking up to the long-haired super soldier. Bucky looks forward once again,

"Don't see the appeal. What Harper does isn't any of our business. She wants to hold some secret rendezvous in her lab, it's not our place to pry." Bucky responds gruffly, not breaking his glare with the elevator doors.

"And what about you? Gossip is second nature to you, shouldn't you be joining the fun?" The way Bucky spat the statement out slightly unnerved Natasha, true she was one to voice opinions but Bucky just seemed... defensive all of a sudden.

"You and I both know I'm more reserved until I've got a glass of liquor in my hand Barnes," Natasha replies coolly, Bucky giving a half-amused huff in response. They stop in front of the elevator, and she's about to ask him what's on his mind when F.R.I.D.A.Y.'s voice comes through the speaker overhead.

"Sergeant Barnes. Ms. Harper and Director Fury are requesting your presence in her lab. She says it's quite urgent." She says calmly, Bucky and Natasha looking to each other for a moment.

"Tell her I'll be right there F.R.I.D.A.Y." He says, looking and pressing the elevator button only to look back at Natasha.

"Not a word, Romanoff." He snaps, the doors opening and him climbing into the car. He turns, presses the '2' button with his flesh hand, and meets her amused gaze with a glare. Natasha gives him a smirk, and as the doors close she gives a salute and a sarcastic "sir yes sir."

 

* * *

 

Stopping in front of the lab, Bucky let in a shaky inhale before blowing said air from his nose. He'd admit it, he was nervous. He steeled himself before allowing the door to slide open just to find Alex stood next to Fury as they look at a holographic projection of some alien... machine. Stepping all the way into the room the door slides shut behind him with a hiss, and with Alex's hair up in a ponytail he can see the way her slightly pointy ear twitches while she talks.

"You see, the main source of energy would lie here, at the small generator placed at the back of the mech. Just give me a moment and I'll be with you, Sergeant Barnes." Alex says conversationally, Bucky jumping at her nonchalant acknowledgment of him before giving a stiff nod even though she couldn't see it. His eyes sweep across the... expansive space, tables with bits and pieces of tech lying on them, some with completed or half taken apart alien machinery. He walks over to one of the smaller machines to recognize it as a prosthetic but made of a metal so dark it almost appears black. It includes gold and silver and different gemstones that were dense in color. It was a beautiful piece.

 

 

"It's primarily made of a combination of Vibranium and Rahaxati, the two strongest metals I know of that could possibly handle the amount of stress I may put it under while still being an easy metal to work with." Alex says, Bucky's head whipping back to see Alex is walking his way.

"What?" Bucky asks, his eyebrows raised and cheeks dusting pink.

"The prosthetic." Alex says simply, pointing to it with her right hand. Only now does he notice that not only is her prosthetic missing, but there's also a black lizard sat comfortably on her left shoulder. She stands next to him, picks it up by the base on the elbow joint, and with a hissing breath in through her teeth she puts the prosthetic into place. She turns it the right way it should be and her body visibly jumps as she forcefully exhales. Bucky watches as she lifts the limb and looks at the hand to fluidly move all five fingers before moving the hand up and down through the wrist a few times.

"God, I'm never gonna get used to that." Alex huffs out, flexing her fingers in and out of a fist. She looks at Bucky, catching his shocked and amazed gaze with a smirk.

"Well c'mon then Sergeant Barnes. I'm a busy woman." She says simply, turning and heading towards a wooden desk at the other side of the room. Bucky follows, seemingly like a dog following its master, as Bucky takes a peek at Fury. He's still looking at projections on the table with interest, but Bucky could swear the corner of his lips was upturned a fraction.

"Please, take a seat. I don't bite." Alex says, calling him back to attention. He looks to see she's sat in a black office chair behind a laptop, pointing to the chair in front of him. He blushes and sits, watching as she plucks the little lizard off her shoulder and sets it on the desk before folding her hands on the desk.

"Well, as you can see I'm one of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s weapons and machinery tech's, and I'm well versed in the area of metal prosthetics, so I'm gonna skip the fluff. After seeing your appendage the first day I was introduced to you I wanted to speak with you and... have a consultation if you will." Alex says, Bucky seemingly caught off guard.

"You're... interested in my arm?" He asks, her giving him an amused huff and a smirk.

"I take it you don't hear that often?" Alex asks, her amusement at his reaction laced in her tone.

"Not really... Being its vibranium and all it doesn't really break, so work on it really isn't something I need done very often." Bucky says with a shrug, Alex smugly leaning back in her chair with her arms folded across her chest.

"Oh trust me, Sergeant Barnes, there is always work to be done and improvements to be made." Alex says, Bucky looking at his metal prosthetic hand.

"Now, I'm just gonna ask you some questions, get a feel for what you'd like to be included to get better use out of it, and if you have any questions I'd love to answer them." Alex says, Bucky looking at her to nod.

"Alrighty, first, how do you feel with the mobility? The movement fluid and acceptable?" She asks, her hands and eyes moving to the laptop.

"Uh, yeah. It's not like it's a facial prosthetic, don't need it for much." Bucky says, crossing his arms as Alex begins typing and giving a thoughtful 'hm'. Bucky sees movement from his peripheral, and looking over he sees the black lizard is looking him dead on with an almost... calculating expression if that's possible. He watches as the head moves up and down like it's analyzing him before its mouth opens and its tongue slides out and stays there like it's sticking its tongue out at him. Bucky's eyes narrow, and before he can respond the typing stops.

"Zero, stick that tongue back where it belongs or you won't be having a tongue to blep with." Alex snaps, Zero's head whipping over to Alex for his tongue to slide back in and his mouth to snap shut.

"Thank you." Alex says, giving him a curt nod before looking back at Bucky.

"Excuse him, he's not a big fan of new people so he tends to show that in... unconventional ways." Alex says, Bucky looking at the lizard to see he's lying on its stomach with an annoyed look. Realizing Bucky is looking at him, he looks to Bucky and lets out a hiss. Alex simply clears her throat for him to look at her, and the glare she gives him has him plopping his head down on the wooden surface with a huff.

"Anyway, back to the consultation, do you have any specific features you'd be interested in?" Alex asks, Bucky's eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

"What do you mean?" He asks, Alex folding her hands together and setting them on the table.

"I'm talking pressure sensors, possible cloaking for stealth missions, the ability for the arm to be manually removed, so on and so forth. Just little things that may make having it be way better than it is now." She states, then lifts up her own bionic limb.

"See, mine not only has pressure sensors and can be removed manually, it also has a tracker built in and a way for me to hack into an electronic device like a computer with relative ease, plus a way to easily get to the main inner workings without peeling the plates apart. It's stuff that makes it adaptable to any situation and makes life nice and easy. Plus the whole "somewhat can feel" thing with the sensors is really nice." She says, giving him a pleased smirk.

"I haven't been able to feel with this arm for over 70 years, ma'am, I'm not sure if starting now is a good idea." Bucky says, causing her to hold up her hands.

"It's a simple suggestion, something for you to think over. You don't need to answer if you're unsure, but it's always fruit for thought." Alex states simply, Bucky nodding and thickly swallowing.

"I'd like time to think that one over." he says, Alex nodding and softly smiling at him.

"That's completely fine. You can take as long as you need." She says reassuringly, Bucky giving a stiff nod. Alex seems to think for a moment, eyebrows slightly furrowed and full lips turned down in a frown.

"I... can't really think of any other questions at the moment, so do you have any to ask me?" Alex asks, Bucky giving a 'hmm' before being quiet for a few moments.

"How long have you had it? Your prosthetic arm." Bucky asks, and Alex gives him a small smile.

"Been five years, the anniversary was two weeks ago." She says, voice almost melancholy.

"Mind if I ask how it happened?" He asks and watches how Alex stiffens, almost bristling.

"Bad accident." She snaps, her tone suggesting it was a sore subject and the discussion about it was over. But on top of that, it suggests to Bucky that it was more than just some bad accident to her, but he knows better than to pry.

"Well, uh, I'm-I'm sorry about that." Bucky stutters, the woman letting out a sigh through her nose as she deflates.

"It's been a while, so I've had my time to heal." She replies, Bucky looking to his lap.

"Is that all?" She asks after a moment, Bucky looking up to silently nod. She gives a curt one in response, standing up to give him a smile that's anything from real.

"Alright then, I'll show you out then." She says, Bucky standing to follow her to the door.

"I'll usually be here in my lab unless I'm called out on a mission, so if you ever want to see me you'll know where to find me." She says after she stops beside the door, Bucky looking at her to nod and give a small 'alright'. She gives him a smile and goes to turn away, but a hand on the wrist of her metal arm causes her to look back.

"I uh, I didn't mean to bring up any bad memories, really." He says, watching as she gives a brief chuckle before giving him a smirk filled with warmth.

"I know, Sergeant Barnes. Sometimes curiosity just gets the best of us."

"Bucky." He states, the woman's eyebrows raising in a silent question.

"Sergeant Barnes sounds too formal, and please don't call me James either, reminds me of when my ma would scold me. If I'm gonna possibly come here you may as well call me Bucky." He says, and for the first time since he walked through that door, he watches as she gives him a smile that reaches her eyes.

"Alright, Bucky." She says, Bucky giving her a small smile and a nod before letting her wrist go.

"You have a good day now." Alex says, mirth evident in her tone.

"You too, _Ms. Harper_." Bucky says teasingly, Alex letting out a snort.

"Now look who's being too formal." She jokes back, Bucky giving a cheeky smirk and shrugging.

"What can I say, it does have a nice ring to it." Alex rolls her eyes, her smile significantly brightening her face.

"Whatever, get out of here 'fore I gotta get physical." She jokes, Bucky chuckling before raising his hands defensively.

"A'ight, a'ight, I'm leavin'." He says, walking to the sliding door for it to let out the telltale hiss as it opens.

"See ya around, Alex." Bucky calls, Alex giving him a 'you too' before he exits the room. He shoves his hands in his pockets, and a smirk can't help but stay on his face as he makes his way to the elevator. She may have been a bit formal and distant, but it was obvious that wasn't all she was. Bucky always did love a good mystery.

Meanwhile, in the lab, Alex makes it back to her office chair to slump down in it with a huff.

"Barnes seemed to warm up well." Fury states, looking at Alex for her to let out an amused huff.

"Yeah, to all I gave him to see. I don't understand why you wanted to induct me in this stupid trial period, honestly. I work well with my team, I lead them efficiently and we get shit done. Why do I gotta deal with the ragtag band of misfits shoved together to be at the beck and call of the government?" She asks, the black lizard moving to the side of the desk to transform into a man with pale skin, chin length reddish-brown hair cut into a side cut that covers the left eye, elf ears, fuzzy facial hair, a black hoodie, black jeans, and black sneakers who looks way too tired to be functioning.

"Because out of every "enhanced"," he says with air quotes. "individual in this place, you're the one person who actually has their shit together and knows how to handle and wrangle a team that would be a shit show without you."

"Zero, you and I both know you or Daj can take over my position as the unit leader and do just as good." Alex says, looking at Zero for him to cross his arms.

"But we can't do it as efficiently, and we sure as hell aren't as focused and quick-thinking. Hell, last mission was probably the fastest I've seen you formulate a new plan. Daj and I would probably take a bit, and by then we'd be getting our faces smashed in. You take last-minute situations logically, you never let your emotions take hold of your judgment, while many of the Avengers don't hold that same mentality. They need someone to be able to take the reins and give them shape, and you're perfect for it." Zero says, causing her to let out a sigh.

"Besides, Stark may be a genius but not even he knows cybernetics and bionics like you. That's why I'm going to be having Barnes come to you for anything dealing with his arm." Fury adds, Alex's eyes widening.

"But sir-"

"No but's. You're the most qualified, so you're going to handle it." Fury states, tone signaling the end of the conversation. Alex lets out a huff as her shoulders slump, her gnawing on the inside of her left cheek.

"Am I clear?" Fury asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Crystal." Alex states blandly, Fury giving a curt nod before turning on his heel and heading towards the sliding door.

"I'll be expecting a report on the findings of your next mission on my desk as soon as possible when you return, I'd rather not have to wait almost two weeks." Fury says, the brunette looking stern as she points at his retreating form.

"That. Was. Once." She states, Fury staying silent as he gets to the sliding door, it hisses open, and he exits the room. The door slides shut and Alex lets out a loud groan, her head falling back and eyes rolling up before she shuts them and rubs them with her hands.

"Oh, I'm gonna be in for such a fun time." Alex says dryly and sarcastically, hands moving off her face for her to lift her head and glare at the door Fury walked out from.


	3. Some Things Are Best Kept Quiet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bucky finds out some important information about his future and his time he'll spend with Alex, and he and Wanda meet some unexpected individuals.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks always to my beta, ZeroEnderborn. You're such a peach. 
> 
> And also thanks to my friend Dajer who's helped with his two characters. You da bes. :p

"I'm sorry, _what_?" Bucky hears Tony ask, followed by a feminine sigh. He walks into the common area to see Maria is a foot or so to his left while the team is sat on the couches and chairs with some movie playing that Bucky's never seen.

"What's going on?" He asks, Tony's head snapping towards him for Bucky to see the shocked and slightly helpless look in his eyes.

"S.H.I.E.L.D.'s reassigning all further work on your arm to that Harper kid!" Tony squawks, shock overtaking Bucky's face as he looks to Maria. She simply shrugs impassively, a single manicured eyebrow raising as she does so.

"Fury's orders." She says, Bucky looking at Steve for some sort of support but he's looking at Maria with an unreadable expression and oblivious to Bucky's distress.

"You had in her file that she works robotics, right?" Steve asks, looking at Maria.

"Yes?" She asks, seemingly confused where his question is going.

"What specific qualifications does she have to get the work transferred to her? I get she is obviously smart enough to handle alien technology, but Buck's arm isn't some extraterrestrial weapon or a robot to tinker with. He needs it every day." He says, Tony gesturing to him with both hands.

"She's been improving and doing maintenance on her own prosthetic for five years, and she achieved a master's in both Robotics and Cybernetics and Biomedical Engineering with a focus on Bionics at the age of 23 as a dual major." Maria states and Tony seems to deflate. Wanda notices how Bucky seems to shrink in on himself slightly, arms crossing and eyes cast down to his shoes.

"She's definitely qualified." Bruce says, pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose.

"Not helping, Banner." Tony snaps, Bruce sighing before looking down at the tablet in his lap.

"I don't care if she's qualified, we don't know her and Wanda can't even get a peep of what's going on in her head. I don't trust her as far as I can throw her." Tony snaps, Maria looking at him in exasperation.

"I don't really trust her either, to be honest. She's got this weird vibe to her and I don't like it." Sam says, Scott nodding in agreement.

"Look, if you want you can talk with Fury about your displeasures, but Alex's been inducted the trial period and she already agreed to handle everything with Barnes's bionic limb. Besides, she's someone who is always open to negotiations." Maria says, Tony crossing his arms.

"Wait, you can't get in her head?" Bucky asks, looking at Wanda in confusion. She shakes her head.

"It's like there's some sort of barrier blocking me out, and all I can get from her is... static." She says, seeming as confused as Bucky is.

"Anyway, shouldn't who works on the arm be Bucky's decision? It is his arm, after all." Natasha pipes up, the room going still as the group looks to him. Bucky looks around like a deer in headlights as everyone waits for his decision.

"I-uh-I mean, I'm okay with it. She's a little cryptic and guarded, sure, but she seems really nice. She called me down for a consultation or something, wanted to see what I'd like my arm to do, but she knows what she's doing. The stuff she's done for her own arm is really impressive, not to mention the black metal of it is an alloy that involves Vibranium." He says, Maria giving him a pleased smile and a nod.

"I'll let Fury know you're on board." She says kindly, Bucky nodding and giving Maria a strained smile.

"That's all I needed to deliver, so continue on with whatever you all were doing." Maria states before turning and walking down the hallway towards the elevator.

"What the hell, Barnes?" Tony asks, Bucky looking at him to see he's angry.

"Look, if S.H.I.E.L.D. wants us to get to know her so badly we may as well give her a chance and get to know her. She deserves that much." Bucky says, standing up normally.

"Bucky's right. I may not be able to hear her thoughts but that shouldn't deter us from getting to know who she is." Wanda says, Bucky looking at her to give her a kind, thankful smile.

"The Stone has shown me much about her." Vision says, everyone startling as they watch him float through the wall near the television.

"Vis!" Wanda snaps with obvious fright, Vision looking to her and seeming sheepish.

"I apologize, but I knew the topic of Ms. Harper is still prevalent and I just got so excited-"

"What's it say, Vision." Steve asks, Vision seeming to go disoriented.

"It's not what it says, more what it's shown me. Thor speaks the truth, Ms. Harper is indeed a goddess, but from what I saw her story is much more complicated than what you may think. Her and the Stone, her and all of the Infinity Stones for that matter, they have a history that goes back as far as their creation." Vision says, Wanda's eyes widening.

"You're saying she was there when they were made and it... remembers her?" Bruce asks, Vision looking to him.

"As I stated previously, it is far more complicated than that." He states before he looks down at the floor once more.

"The individual the Stone remembers does not have the same outward appearance as Alexis, but the strength of Ms. Harper's power and the relative familiarity the Stone feels with her presence is exact. As far as I'm aware, the two are one and the same." He says, and the room falls quiet.

"How-How is that possible?" Natasha asks, her confusion obvious.

"I believe it may be a form of reincarnation, for that's really the only explanation I can think of." Vision states, and while most of the group seems to be thinking it over Wanda hears a single, determined thought that speaks in Bucky's voice.

" _I'm gonna find out._ "

 

* * *

 

 

Bucky was tapping the butt end of his pen against his bottom lip in thought, sat at the dining room table with a sheet of lined paper sat in front of him with one line holding a small amount of writing.

"I swear, I could probably hear you thinking from across the planet." Wanda jokes, Bucky looking up to see her heading his way with a smirk.

"What's got you thinking so hard?" She asks, leaning against the back of the chair across from him.

"At the meeting-slash-consultation that I had with Alex, she gave me some things to think about. She's letting me pick out things I think would be nice to add on to my arm, but I haven't gotten very far. I... never really got a say in what my arm could do with HYDRA, King T'Challa made this as basic as he could given I only needed it to fight, and Tony has never bothered to ask if I wanted any upgrades, so..." He says distractedly, looking down at the paper again.

"Maybe I can help? Talking about a topic out loud does tend to get ideas flowing." She says sweetly, Bucky looking from her to the paper and back again before he shrugs.

"Why not." He replies simply, Wanda moving over to his side of the table to slide into the chair next to him.

"What do you have down so far?" Wanda asks, leaning towards him a bit to see what he'd written down. He slides the paper over slightly so she can see it better.

"Pressure sensors." Bucky says, Wanda looking to see he has a distant, melancholy look on his face.

"I-I wanna be able to feel with this hand again." Bucky says softly, looking to the metal hand resting on the piece of paper.

"You said she's done impressive stuff with her own, so I'm sure you'll be in good hands." Wanda says, rubbing his back soothingly.

"You meet her yet? It's been a while since the "meeting" she had with that group, Thor, and Fury." Bucky says, doing one-handed air quotes and having a disgruntled look on his face.

"Vision went to see her, but apparently she seemed occupied. There was also a lizard or something there that Vision got a weird vibe from." She says, Bucky huffing.

"I've met him. His name's Zero, for some reason. He's... very expressive." He says, and with Wanda sensing some uncomfortable feelings she stands.

"Y'know what we can do?" She asks suddenly, Bucky looking up at her with an eyebrow raised.

"We can ask Alex what she'd recommend specifically for you. You _do_ have a full arm appendage after all." Wanda adds, Bucky raising an eyebrow before a smirk slowly slides onto his face.

"You just don't wanna go down there alone, do you?" He asks, Wanda deflating slightly.

"No... not really." Wanda mutters, looking down to her sneakers for Bucky to huff a laugh.

"Alright, let's go." Bucky relents, standing and grabbing his pencil and sheet of paper, missing Wanda's million-watt grin.

 

* * *

 

 

Bucky stepped through the door first, per Wanda's request, to be met with _quite_ a sight. Alex talks with two men in front of the schematics of a building, the man on her right about four inches taller than her while the one on her left is about five or six. The man on her right has reddish brown hair cut into a sidecut that has the long strands moved to cover his left eye, while the visible one holds an almost exhausted looking gaze. He's got a light tan and wears a deep purple hoodie, jeans, and sneakers. Meanwhile, the man on the left looks far more... bizarre. One iris as black as the night while the other as white as the clouds in the sky he's got pale skin that both compliments and contrasts his eyes. His black hair is cut fairly short in a fluffy-ish sort of mess, which he consistently runs his hand through to push the strands away. He wears a red bandanna around his neck, a crimson leather jacket, a sky blue shirt, charcoal gray jeans, and dark brown combat boots. But it isn't the new men Bucky's eyes are on, it's the little robots floating beside each person. The one next to Alex is turquoise blue in color, the one next to the man with the sidecut has one in dark spring green, the one near the man with black hair is a deep Tuscan red or a roast coffee color.

"I still think I can sneak in, get the important shit, and get out before anyone spots me." The raven-haired man says, his voice sounding almost eccentric and posh.

"That's still too risky, we may have the layout of the building but we don't know the shift patterns yet. HYDRA wants whatever this is," the man with the sidecut talks with an almost American Italian accent while he points to some machine in the basement that's highlighted in red. "heavily protected if there's already that many men topside. We need to plan this carefully, or we're gonna be looking like slices of swiss cheese."

"You and your fuckin' cheese analogies, I swear to God." Alex teases with a smirk, the man with the sidecut looking at her.

"Least I didn't draw a shitty model." The man teases back, Alex turning to him and pointing with an annoyed look that the smirk she's fighting not to show isn't very genuine.

"I had... 15 MINUTES... to put this together. Fucking cut me some slack." She snaps, Bucky raising an eyebrow as he and Wanda watch the exchange. The little turquoise robot peeks away from the exchange to look their way before doing a visible double take, and give a robotic sounding "uhhhhh" before turning to Alex.

"Hey, uh, Boss?" The robot asks, single lilac colored eye staying on Bucky. Alex and the man continue bickering, and that causes the robot to look at Alex and ram their little chassis into Alex's head.

"Ow! What the fuck, Force?" Alex snaps, looking back at the robot and rubbing the spot the little robot knocked into. "Force" turns itself towards Bucky and Wanda in a gesture for Alex to look that way before looking back at Alex, and Alex slowly looks that way to finally get a look at Bucky and Wanda for the first time. An almost embarrassed blush spreads across her face as her eyes widen, and the silence causes both men to look in the direction Alex is looking.

"Uh- Hi! I-uh... thought I'd locked the door..." Alex says nervously, the man with a sidecut giving a mumbled "good job, idiot" only for Alex to smack the back of his head.

"Well, this was gonna happen eventually." Alex mutters to herself before straightening up and moving around the table, "Force" following. She walks over to Wanda and holds out her hand.

"Hi, I'm Alex. You must be Ms. Maximoff." She says kindly, Wanda giving her a soft smile and shaking her hand.

"Wanda is fine." Wanda says, Alex smiling and nodding.

"Well, since you're here, I may as well introduce you to the members of my team." Alex says, backing up a few steps before turning by her waist to point at the man with black hair.

"That's Jared." She says, Jared giving a two-fingered salute and a "sup". Alex then turns to point at the other guy.

"And that is Antonio, but he prefers to go by Tony." Alex says, before turning towards Wanda and Bucky. Shielding one side of her face with a hand she stage whispers, "He's a bit of an asshole."

"I can hear you, ya know." Tony drones, clearly unamused by the statement, but Alex only gives him a bright smile.

"I know." Alex coos, before looking back at Bucky and Wanda.

"And these little floaters here are _officially_ called C-PICT, but they each have their individual names. This here's Force." Alex smiles fondly at the little robot.

"Howdy doody." The little turquoise robot chirps happily, bobbing in the air once in greeting.

"The green one is Excel, he's Tony's little companion." Force says, gesturing to the little robot now floating above Tony's outstretched hand with her chassis.

"Salutations, slowly decaying meat bags!" Excel chirps happily, his chassis tilting slightly to the side before righting himself. Force turns to Excel with the digital eye narrowed.

"Gross, dude." Force says, obviously disgusted with his greeting.

"What?" Excel asks cluelessly, Force's digital eye rolling before she turns back to Bucky and Wanda.

"And Jared's is named Lorthil. He's a bit cold and gets bored easy but he's pretty alright I guess." She says, a robotic huff coming from her left being the only noise. The two Avengers look to see the deep Tuscan red robot is turned away and looking at the wall to his right.

"But besides that, is there uh, anything I can do for you two?" Alex asks nervously, hands interlocking in front of her while she twiddles her fingers.

"Bucky here wanted to talk about some stuff about the arm upgrades you were mentioning." Wanda says smoothly, Alex's face brightening.

"You're actually gonna take me up on that?" Alex asks, looking at Bucky for him to give an indifferent shrug.

"You seem capable." He says simply, Alex giving him a smirk and an amused huff.

"If you could wait out there and give me say 15 minutes, and I'll be right with ya. Sound good?" Alex asks, looking at Bucky and Wanda for both of them to nod.

"Alright."


	4. And Some Things You Should Shout From The Rooftops

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Always a big thanks to my Beta ZeroEnderborn, who's just a peach.

"Alright, sooooo what exactly are you here for?" Alex asks hesitantly, sitting at her desk after Bucky and Wanda have sat.

"Well, Bucky here is having a bit of trouble coming up with ideas for upgrades to his arm, so I suggested he come back here and get a more professional opinion on what would work best with his arm." Wanda says, Alex nodding as she leans forward in her chair and places her right elbow on the dark wood.

"Well, did you have anything you were somewhat certain about wanting?" Alex asks as she looks to Bucky.

"The pressure sensors." Bucky says almost shyly, and he can see shock take hold of her features.

"You... you really wanna go through with that?" She asks hesitantly, waiting for Bucky's nod to slowly show how pleased she was.

"Alright. I can do that for ya, but there's some stuff I'll need to check and go through with you before we get there. For _now_ , I want to do an assessment of your arm to see where I should start first." Alex says, Bucky nodding before watching as Alex opens a drawer to pull out a perforated notepad and a pencil.

"I'm gonna ask, since you're a bit of a more special case and I want you to be comfortable, are you okay with me doin' what I need to? I'm not gonna touch you at all unless you say I can, but I really don't want to trigger any bad memories because I know how bad of a funk it can leave someone in." Alex says, looking up at him through her lashes.

"You have experience?" Wanda asks, and Alex looks up at her with a slightly haunted look and a tight smile.

"You could say that, yeah." She says tightly, eyes darting down to her hand that holds the pencil.

"Let's just say I've got experience with a lot of things." She adds quietly, Bucky's eyebrows furrowing at the sad, distant sound to her voice. It took her a moment, where her eyes had glazed over with a sad nostalgia, before she shook herself back to the present and gave the two of them a small, forced smile.

"But enough about that. You cool with it?" Alex asks, Bucky giving an 'mhm' that has her giving a sharp nod.

"Alright. First off I wanna test the movement of each portion of your arm. You're gonna be moving it a lot, so if either sitting or standing for it makes you feel comfortable it's fine by me." Alex says, tone full professionalism as she scoots back her roller chair slightly.

"I've gotta move anyway to get a good look of your arm, so, really it doesn't matter what you choose on my end." She adds, Bucky giving an absent nod. He feels a comforting hand on his shoulder, him looking to see Wanda is looking at him with a reassuring smile. He looks back to Alex.

"I'll stand if that's okay with you." He says, watching her give him a warm smile.

"Of course," As Alex stands, Bucky does as well, Wanda's hand sliding down to take his flesh one as a sort of anchor for him. Alex moves to his left side, her eyes trained on the short sleeve of his shirt.

"Oh-" Bucky says, surprised, and he quickly lets go of Wanda's hand to roll it up onto his shoulder before it darts back to her comforting hold. Alex simply gives a small smile and a nod.

"Alright, I'm gonna start this off with you simply just wiggling your fingers and your thumb like you would with your other hand. Think of it like you're doing one of those flirty waves girls do in movies to seem attractive, just with your thumb added onto it." She says, Bucky looking at her in confusion for her to show him an example with her right hand. He lifts his arm and mimics the action, albeit a bit slower than her demonstration. She watches for a few moments before looking at the notepad and writing on it, giving a pleased hum.

"That's good, you can stop now. But if you would, keep your arm flexed like that for me." She says distractedly before she stops her writing and looks to his face once again.

"Now, I want you to open and close the hand into a fist maybe... ten times? Yeah, ten sounds good. Do it as fast or as slow as you'd like." She states, Bucky doing the action again and again as she requested. By around the fifth or sixth clench of his hand she gives a small 'hm' and begins writing her analysis down. When the faint whirring and clicking of the metal plates on his hand stopped she takes a few moments to finish her sentence before looking up at him. In her eyes is a sort of fire he'd never seen before, far different from the dull, bored stares he'd get from HYDRA scientists during any maintenance of his arm.

"Good! Now I want you to move your hand by your wrist in any way you can, flexing and extending, rotating, waving your hand by just your wrist, that sorta thing." She says simply, but Bucky is still caught on the words _flexing_  and _extending_. His confusion must relay onto his face, because a brief flash of confusion and then realization is quick to be replaced by embarrassment.

"Shit, sorry. Me and my fucking anatomical terms you'd think I'd be some type'a doctor or somethin'." Alex jokes, a faint blush dusting her cheeks to portray her embarrassment.

"Basically flexing and extending for the hand is you just move it up and down in that lazy, floppy wave sorta fashion." She says, Bucky giving an understanding "oooooh" before nodding.

"How many times should I do it?" He asks, Alex giving a 'hmmmm' as her lips pull to one side of her face in thought.

"Until I tell ya to stop. There's a few ways you can move the hand, but if you try something and it doesn't work don't be too discouraged about it. Just tell me when you're gonna try somethin' different than what you were doin', okay?" She says kindly, and Bucky can't help the small smile that slightly tugs at the corner of his lips.

"Sure thing, sugar." He replies almost on instinct, his voice as smooth as butter and tone flirtatious. It surprised Bucky as much as it seemed to surprise Alex because from looking at her shocked expression he could feel they were sharing the same look. That was until his face began to heat up and _he_  was the one embarrassed, yet Alex just went from shocked to amused, giving him a grin that reached her eyes.

"I-uh-God, I dunno where-" He sputtered, but stopped when Alex raised a hand to stop him with a _giggle_. The sound was brief, but coming from her it sounded like music to his ears.

"It's okay, really. I don't mind it all that much if the flirting is comin' from a pretty face." She says with a smile, and at the obvious flirtatious retaliation she gave to his slip-up had his face turning pink for a different reason.

"Now move your dumb, stupid hand." She says, sounding highly amused. He huffs in both relief for the topic change and faked empty amusement at her calling his hand dumb and stupid. He begins moving the hand up and down, keeping his forearm as still as he can with the movement. He executes the motion swiftly and efficiently, the only sounds in the lab being the AC, the whirring of his arm, and Alex's hurried writing on the pad of yellow lined paper. She looks up just as he is about to say he's going to change the movement, and he shuts his mouth when Alex raises an eyebrow and gestures towards his moving hand with a small nod of her head. He looks at his hand and an almost annoyed look appears when he scrunches his eyebrows together slightly.

"Uh, I don't think I can rotate it in circles or do the little wave thing or whatever. Shuri told me it's the same build as my titanium one but it's just made with vibranium." He says, looking to Alex nervously to find she gives him a warm, understanding smile.

"That's okay. Do you know if you can rotate your forearm by the elbow?" She asks, Bucky giving a one-sided shrug and a bob of his left eyebrow as an 'I don't know.'

"I can try it." He says, Alex giving him a smile and a nod. She hurriedly writes something on her notepad as Bucky's eyebrows furrow in concentration, his lips pursing and eyes locked on his arm. He turns it so the top of his hand is facing her, and from there moves it so his palm is facing towards the ceiling. Alex gives a pleased and thoughtful hum before she begins writing, leaving Bucky to his thoughts that seemed to turn darker for a moment before Wanda squeezes his flesh hand just enough to jolt him back. She rubs her thumb along the top of his hand, calming and grounding him enough to shove some of those thoughts away.

"The range of motion you have currently in the rotation is a very good sign for me. Actually, it's very good. Means I don't have to go tell whatever idiot made your previous two arms how one actually moves." She says, Bucky cracking a small smirk.

"Even if you could, the guy who made my titanium one is probably long dead by now to get the pleasure of hearing that scolding." He says with a shrug, but the unimpressed look she gives him causes him to internally waver a fraction.

"I think you underestimate my tenacity to do the actions I bring up, Sergeant Barnes. Especially if it involves HYDRA." She says cold and unamused, and Bucky would be lying if he said that harsh, calculating gaze from her heterochromic eyes didn't send a slight shiver down his spine.

"But my hatred for those God complex having dumbasses isn't the point here." She says, the look in her eyes dulling as she waves it off.

"Point is, I'm almost done with my assessment, so how about we get it over with so you two can get back to your friends and not have to deal with me and my annoying self again until you need to." She says with a tired huff of a laugh and a smile that doesn't reach her eyes, said eyes holding a look of tired resignation. Bucky's words seem to dry up in his throat, confused why she'd think herself boring but shocked by the almost knowing tone she spoke the statement with.

"Could you, uh, move your forearm like you're flexing and unflexing your bicep please?" Alex asks after clearing her throat, obviously wanting to move away from the awkward tension that had unknowingly filled the space between them. Bucky just nods and does as he was asked, and the rest of the assessment is silent beside Alex asking for him to do more movements with his arm. When she finishes she returns to her desk and plops the pad of paper and pencil down on the top before sitting in her office chair and sliding it forward. Bucky sits as well, unsure of what to say to remedy the crushing silence that followed her statement. That was until Alex spoke up and brought his attention back to the reason he was here.

"The amount of movement you have in your arm is great, but it's merely the basic movement you would need to get by on an everyday basis. I noticed, however, the movement in your fingers is quite slow when balling your hand into a fist. It looks more like they're calibrating into that position like it's a pre-inputted action than a willful movement. I can't exactly blame the Wakandans for that, they were simply trying to make the piece functioning enough to use in day to day life, but I dunno... I just don't like seeing that blocky, mechanical movement in an appendage. Hell, my own hand used to do it, took me almost six months to get it to go at a pace I was okay with dealing with." She says, looking to her bionic hand to flex and unflex it to and from a fist with a movement that was much faster and more natural looking than his own.

"If you want my professional opinion, I'd suggest we speed up that movement as much as we can, and _maybe_ add an access terminal so any future work on the inside components is much easier to get done. Now, about the pressure sensors, where exactly were you thinking of having them placed in your arm?" Alex asks, Bucky thinking for a moment as he looks at her, perplexed.

"Fingers, mainly. Any other places you'd recommend?" He asks, Alex giving a hum before steepling her fingers. After a moment, Alex shakes her head.

"Nope. Fingers work just fine." She says, and her face seems to soften slightly.

"Now, you seem comfortable with Wanda, and you trusted her enough to come along with you for this as a comforting presence, so I'd rather let you both know this so you two can talk with anyone else you may trust about what I'm going to tell you. Depending on the inner wiring and if there is even a connection between the arm and your nervous system, the procedure could take up to four or so hours. These don't simply work through the nerve endings in your muscles, the procedure I do combines the main nerves that go to the part of the brain that assesses texture and shape with the technology of the sensors, and it hurts like a motherfucker if the person is not put under some sort of anesthesia. While I heavily encourage your friend's opinion, Bucky, this decision is ultimately your own. But for now, I want you to think over what I've suggested and informed you about for a few days to make sure it's not some spur of the moment decision. Being able to have your sense of touch back is going to be a huge step to take, so I really want you to be sure you're okay with everything that'll come with having it. Plus, I'm-uh, sorta headed out for a mission at the ass crack of dawn tomorrow morning and I'm unsure when I'll be back. So, saying a few days leaves me a nice window." Alex says, Wanda smiling and nodding.

"Sure thing." She says, Alex looking between the two Avengers.

"Will that be all?" Alex asks with a raised brow for Bucky and Wanda to nod their heads after thinking it over.

"Great! Then I'll see you when I get back." Alex says with a small smile, Bucky and Wanda standing up.

"Good luck on your mission." Wanda chirps, Alex nodding her head in thanks as a response. Wanda and Bucky take that as their queue to leave and make their way to the door, Bucky wanting to say something to ease the feeling of the wall between himself and Alex before he goes but nothing comes to mind. So, he simply leaves with the nagging feeling there was something more he could have done.


	5. Wounds Cut Deep

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goes without saying my Beta ZeroEnderborn is a doll. Time to meet a new character! :D

Word came back her and her team came in a week after he went through an assessment with unexpected rescued S.H.I.E.L.D. agents on board and many injuries, but apparently, Alex disappeared by the time medical went to check her. Assuming she'd be in her lab, Bucky had made his way down to her floor and had made his way into her sector. F.R.I.D.A.Y. had informed him he was given access when he'd asked if the door to her lab was locked. What he wasn't expecting to find when he walked into the lab was find her with bloodied bandages and gauze on a lab table in front of her and her with her shirt ridden up slightly, hands on the bandages over her stomach that go under the fabric, and her eyes wide like she got caught with her hand in the cookie jar.

"Uh, I-I can explain?" She asks meekly when seeing his shocked expression, a nervous grin that falls when seeing the shock replaced by an expression she couldn't decipher.

"Have you even been **_down_** to medical yet?" Bucky asks, clearly unamused at the sight.

"No, and I don't need to. They've got those agents to treat, they don't need me there adding on trouble." She says, a stubborn lilt taking hold of her tone that causes him to give a long-suffering sigh.

"You'll be in real trouble if that gets infected. You need to get that checked out." Bucky says, sounding so done. Little does she know, Bucky's getting memories of a certain short blond who tended to stand just as stubborn, and he gets an idea.

"I'm fine. Sure, it opened a little bit, but that's not gonna kill me." She snaps, looking at the mess of bloodied cloth and gauze to turn and walk to the trash obviously favoring her left side. Bucky gives a huff and walks up behind her while she tosses the used stuff away.

"You're going to the medical wing, let's go." He says, voice more a demand than a statement. She looks back at him with a challenging look in her eyes.

"Why should I? I told you, I'm fine." She snaps, seeming to square up a bit in a dare to say something she's against.

"It seems Tony and Jared are really close with you, I'm sure if they found out you were injured and didn't get it checked out their methods of getting you to medical would be a lot worse than mine." He says, watching as her eyes widen in shock before they narrow in anger.

"Are you trying to _blackmail_  me into getting medical attention?" She asks, anger hidden beneath a measured tone.

"Oh, it's not blackmailing if I know your initial response means I'm right." He replies nonchalantly with a shrug to get an annoyed huff of a laugh and an eye roll from Alex before she turns and moves towards her desk with a grumble.

"Yeah, you can take that nonchalant attitude and shove it up your-"

"F.R.I.D.A.Y., where's Antonio and Jared off of Alex's team?" Bucky asks, Alex whipping around to look at him in near shock he asked.

"Mr. Altomari and Mr. Bell are currently both in Mr. Altomari's room with a few others on their team." F.R.I.D.A.Y. states simply, Bucky locking eyes with her to find her own are narrowed and her mouth moves slightly like she's contemplating the words she's going to say next.

"Would you like for me to call them down for you?" F.R.I.D.A.Y. asks next, and the simple question causes Alex's head to fall forward and a resigned sigh to tumble from her lips.

"That's not necessary, F.R.I.D.A.Y.." Alex says defeatedly, a smug grin growing as he watches her.

"Would you instead let the med bay know I'm coming in to get my injuries checked?" Alex says, lifting her head to look at Bucky's expression and have her frown fall _heavier_.

"Of course, Ms. Harper." F.R.I.D.A.Y. says simply, and with that, the conversation ends. Alex points at him with an annoyed look on her face.

"I die in there, I'm haunting your ass until the end of time." She snaps, sounding so honest Bucky has to use nearly all the willpower he can to not laugh at her.

"How about you make threats after you're checked out, give me more of a reason to believe them." He replies amused, watching as her annoyance visibly stews while he extends an elbow to her.

"Let's just get this over with." She snaps, pushing past him and making her way to the door of her lab with a quietly snickering Bucky behind her.

 

* * *

 

"You weren't dragged down here by your toenails, I'm surprised." A male jokes with a choppy, kinda poorly executed Russian accent, Alex huffing as Bucky looks up to see a 20 something-year-old man with shoulder-length black hair, a nicely trimmed beard, and pierced elf ears walk in looking at a clipboard.

"It's because I was threatened with the Mother Hens getting involved." Alex says, obviously annoyed she's sitting on an observation table. She glares at Bucky for a moment, who gives her a smug smirk from where he's sat at a chair with his arms crossed. The man looks up from the clipboard to look at Alex with an amused twinkle in his dark eyes before following her glare to Bucky.

"You must be Sergeant Barnes." He says, Bucky looking to see the man heading to stand near him and hold out a hand. Standing in front of him now Bucky realizes the man _had_ to be around 4'9-5'.

"Mikhail Vasylov, I'm the MIB unit's usual doctor and long-suffering physician to Ms. Harper here." He says, Bucky smiling and shaking Mikhail's hand.

"Or if you wanna annoy him you call him Mickey." Alex adds on for Mikhail to turn and glare at her.

"Not if you want me to heal that wound you won't." He snaps, and Alex shuts her mouth by biting her lip and poorly trying to hide a grin. Mikhail simply gives an exasperated sigh.

"Come on, shirt up, let me see what you've done this time." Mikhail says, flicking his index finger upwards. Alex huffs before grabbing the hem and pulling her shirt up and off, Bucky's eyes widening in shock at first at the blatant comfort she has until he sees how high the bandages reach. They stop at the hem of her sports bra, blood spotting the fresh bandages in a vague shape of a slash across her abdomen.

"Ебена мать, Vykalri what happened?!" Mikhail says worriedly, hurrying to her side to stop Alex's hand when she goes to pull the bandage free.

"HYDRA guy snuck up while I was overwhelmed, managed to get a slash in before Tony came over to help. It-" Alex tries to hide the wince she gives when Mikhail puts a hand on Alex's abdomen. "It isn't as bad as you think."

"Yeah, you say that every time but how do your wounds always look when you come here? Awful. Seriously, Alex, one day your stubbornness is gonna get you with either an infection or extreme blood loss and that won't be my fault." He scolds, finally taking to untucking the bandages as he looks up at her through his lashes.

"Now you're just being melodramatic." Alex says through gritted teeth as Mikhail peels away the bandages and gauze, and the wound that's uncovered sends a chill down Bucky's spine and he gives a small gasp. It looks nasty, maybe about 3 inches wide and going from just below the left side of her ribcage diagonally to above her right hip bone. The skin around the cut is red and irritated and the wound oozes blood lazily in response to the gauze being peeled away.

"How in the actual fuck are you not either doubled over in pain or showing really... any signs of pain in general." Bucky snaps with obvious disbelief, Alex looking over at him with a look that shows she's obviously hiding how much pain she's in. His eyes are scanning over the wound, the look both analytical and disbelieving.

"You sorta get a higher pain tolerance when a guy chops your arm off above the elbow and stabs you a few times in the torso before leaving you to die. Also boosts it if you get injured a lot." She says tightly, Bucky looking to see the gnarly scars that adorn her chest, sides, and the area above the prosthetic where the skin sort of melds with the dark metal.

"You-What?" Bucky's dumbfounded with the knowledge. She lost her forearm and elbow... because someone tried to _murder_ her.

"You know how this goes, Ратник. Would you like a mouthguard or something?" Mikhail asks, Alex looking at him before clenching her jaw and shaking her head.

"Alright." He says almost nervously, placing one hand on each side of the wound where it crosses her stomach. Alex grips both hands onto the edge of the observation table as she squeezes her eyes shut, Mikhail giving a muttered 'remember to breathe' before sliding his eyes shut. He takes a deep breath and as he exhales a glowing goldish-green color moves down his arms. As soon as it hits his hands Alex takes a sharp breath in through her nose and her hands grip onto the edge a little tighter. Her breathing is labored and her eyes are squeezed tight as every muscle is stiff, but Bucky can only watch in awe as the glow rests on the edges of the wound and slowly pulls them together. Mikhail gets halfway done when the groan of metal catches Bucky's attention. He looks to where the origin was to find Alex's metal hand was clenching the edge so hard she was warping it. Mikhail suddenly backs off, Alex giving a deep breath as her eyelids fly open, her muscles untensing somewhat but her body is shaking. The wound has lost its redness and isn't bleeding anymore, but the only remains of the portion of the wound that was seemingly melded back together is a pale scar.

"Let's take a break, I need to get my energy back up so I'm going to get some in me." Mikhail looks at Bucky.

"Make sure she doesn't leave." He says seriously, and Bucky can only get a nod out before Mikhail goes off to wherever his storage of energy foods and drinks is.

"That day you lost your arm..." Bucky says, looking at the waxed linoleum floor in a confused daze. Alex simply lets out a sigh after taking a breath.

"Yeah. It... it wasn't a fun experience." She says, Bucky looking at her to see she's staring at her lap.

"Do you... wanna talk about it? I mean, we're gonna be seeing each other often for my arm, so I'd like to get to know about you." He says, Alex's shoulders falling into a slump as her head falls forward.

"I'd started my sophomore year of college like two, three weeks before it happened. I was living in my parent's apartment because I was 18 and was a full-time student more invested in my studies than getting a job. It-It was a Monday I think, 'cuz I had classes until 2:30 and I'd be home before my dad got back from work. Well, uh..." Alex lifts her head and looks up to the fluorescent light above her with tears slowly beginning to well up.

"I got home to find the apartment a wreck. It-It looked like someone came in and was looking for something. I didn't hear anybody so y'know I put my bag where I usually did and grabbed the bat we keep just in case. So I sweep the apartment and there's fuckin' nobody, but the window in my bedroom was broken. It was when I moved back into the living room shit sorta... kicked off. My phone started ringing, and answering it it was my dad. I remember telling him the state of the apartment and shit but he, I can fucking quote what he said, he said, "Alex, I need you to listen to me. I need you to calmly walk out of the apartment and go next door. I'm like, four minutes away and I'll explain when I get there. You just stay on the phone with me." So I'm like "okay, you're worrying me but okay". But I don't even make it two steps before I hear footsteps hurrying towards me from behind. I turn to find a guy in a hood with a huge knife comin' at me, and we got into a bit of a struggle. He got the bat out of my hands and got me to the floor and just started trying to punch me. I-I think he was trying to knock me unconscious but I'm not sure. Apparently I put up too much of a struggle for him 'cuz he just started stabbing..." Her voice cuts out at the word 'stabbing', and Bucky can feel his heart break.

"I don't like using my abilities if I don't have to, but that sorta warranted some usage. Put some metal to cover my left hand and forearm to try and like, block the attacks and punch him to get him off me, but he just took the arm by the wrist, held it down with his booted foot, and just started hacking at the area above where the metal stopped. Which so happened to be my elbow and the bottom portion of my humerus, where my prosthetic stops at now. I'd lost a good amount of blood by that time so my memory about what happened next was a little hazy, but apparently he finally hacked it off when my dad and some other people with guns kicked the door in. There was some gunshots but they were a bit murky, and before I passed out my dad appeared above me like... trying to keep me conscious or something." Alex says, obviously choked up as tears roll down her cheeks.

"Holy fuck..." Bucky whispers, obviously horrified.

"I woke up like... two weeks later in a hospital. Apparently I flatlined twice during surgery because he just fucked me up with stab wounds. Pierced my right lung and broke through two ribs to get to it, got my stomach twice, went through my right pectoral muscle near my deltoid, cut through a part of my waist on my left side when he tried to stab through my abdomen for a third time and I moved, and basically mutilated the skin and muscle tissue and the bone of my left arm when he hacked through it. The doctors said if my dad and the people he was with got there even ten seconds later I'd be dead." She says weakly, Bucky's eyebrows furrowing as he gives her a sorrowful, sympathetic look.

"I'm so sorry that happened to you." He says weakly, Alex giving a wet smile and a single-shouldered shrug.

"It happened, there's not much I can do about it. But the people my dad was with?" Alex asks, looking at Bucky.

"Fury and Maria." She says simply, watching as Bucky's eyebrows raise and his eyes widen.

"Apparently S.H.I.E.L.D. had been keeping an eye on me for a while after a few, uh, _incidents_ had happened through my life that were somewhat unexplainable. Well, a week before the attack a mission to get intel from a HYDRA base found out one of the higher-ups in the ranks saw me as a threat to them and decided I needed to be taken out. So they got some rookie to do the job, but Fury and Maria got to my dad to tell him what was going on without knowing I'd be getting to the apartment 15 minutes later. They took the guy out as my dad was trying to stop the bleeding, and put some protection in place for me as I was healing. I woke up to him looking out the window and Maria sat at my right looking at a tablet, and after some talking and stuff they basically told me they were interested in having me in something called the Avengers Initiative." She says, Bucky's back straightening.

"They've wanted you to join the Avengers all this time?" Bucky asks, Alex nodding.

"Fury knew I had potential, and from keeping an eye on me he found I had a huge range of powers and abilities, I could both lead and be able to be a beneficial part of a team... basically I had everything he was looking for and he wanted me on board. I took some time to think about it, but ultimately I declined. I was unskilled in fighting, I hated using my powers and abilities, and I wanted to finish my degrees. So, Fury and I made a deal. I'd train at S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy when I had time beneath Maria, I'd finish my degrees to the level I was happy with, and when I got all of that done I would join. Well... as you can tell, when that time came I was already leading my own unit and getting information for S.H.I.E.L.D. on extraterrestrial weapons. And well, here we are." Alex says, throwing her arms outwards in a sort of 'here I am' gesture.

"I-wow..." Bucky mutters, his eyebrows raised. He watches as her right-hand moves to the pendant of a necklace she has around her neck that he didn't even notice, her rubbing the surface between her thumb and index finger. He's about to ask about it when two sets of approaching footsteps get both of their attention. Mikhail is chewing on an energy bar followed by Bruce, who looks at Alex with a look that's a mix between impressed and wary.

"Dr. Banner wanted to say hello since he has the chance, and you're trapped here instead of being holed up in your lab." Mikhail says through a mouthful, Alex rolling her eyes at the action before giving Bruce a kind look and a warm smile. He greets Bucky politely before turning his attention to Alex once more.

"Dr. Banner, it's a pleasure to meet you." Alex says kindly, holding out her hand for him to take.

"You as well, Ms. Harper." Bruce says timidly, taking her hand and they shake.

"Even though it wasn't exactly in my field, I'd read a few articles in college about your work per my professor's insistent raving of them and I must say, I'm still highly impressed with the papers you had written on the topic of biochemistry." She says with a grin and a sparkle in her eyes, Bruce seeming to brighten slightly at hearing she wasn't going to talk about his work with gamma radiation.

"I've managed to read a few of your own as well, the-the leaps and bounds you made through the connection of a prosthetic to the nerve system with minimal damage done are just astounding. Not to mention that your work on programming bionic limbs to hold the same movement capabilities as the limb their replacing is seemingly unparalleled." He says happily, and for the first time Bucky sees Alex _blush_.

"I'm sure it's not _unparalleled_ , it's just people have yet to find out how to do it is all." Alex says timidly, scratching the back of her neck with her flesh hand.

"And people _**also**_  have yet to remotely understand the alien technology S.H.I.E.L.D. has in its possession, yet here you are knowing exactly how to work each one and how to dismantle it safely." He jests, Alex chuckling as her cheeks turn a little darker pink.

"Now that's just me having some family secrets, Doctor." She retorts with a smirk, Bruce giving an amused huff.

"I'm sure." He muses, giving her a small smile.

"Well, I should be going. Tony asked if I come to see this recent thing he's been working on, says he'd like my input. I'm in our shared lab most of the time, so please don't be a stranger. Feel free to visit any time. It'd be great to talk to someone who is pleasant to talk to and _isn't_  Tony." Bruce says as he backs away from her towards the door, Alex snickering in response that has her nose crinkling.

"I'll definitely keep that in mind, Dr. Banner." She muses, Bruce giving a final wave before turning and exiting the med bay.

"Alright," Mikhail says with a clap after throwing away the empty energy bar wrapper. "Let's finish this up."

 

* * *

 

" _ **A WEEK?!**_ " Alex all but screeches, looking like she's about to deck Mikhail right there right now.

"A week. I want to make sure there isn't any other complications and allow your body time to rest. Besides, a week with you off the field gives me peace of mind you won't immediately be back in here for some stupid self-sacrifice bullshit that you're known for." Mikhail says seriously, Alex looking at him in utter disbelief.

"I-"

"A week, end of discussion." Mikhail interrupts, Alex's mouth gaping like a fish in air.

"It's not gonna kill you, Vykalri. Think about it, you can get some of that staff practice you've been meaning to get to done, maybe catch up on some sleep because we **all **know you don't sleep a full 7 hours, hell, you can meet the rest of the Avengers you haven't gotten around to meeting. You don't always have to be on the front-lines." Mikhail sympathizes, only to get an annoyed huff in retaliation. She angrily pulls her long-sleeved shirt back on, yanking the sleeves up above her elbows. She hops off the observation table to look down at Mikhail and point at him.

"Fine. But something comes up and they need me I'm going without hesitation." She states angrily, Mikhail giving an exasperated sigh.

"I expect no less from you, Vykalri. Now get out, both of you, I've got work to do." He says, shooing at her and Bucky with his hands and following them to the door. When it shuts behind the two of them Alex looks at Bucky and glares. Bucky simply holds his hand up when she opens her mouth to speak.

"I'm gonna stop you before you even say anything, doll, because it's not my fault you got yourself injured." He says simply, watching as she shuts her mouth and glowers at him.

"Still hate you for making me go." She says grumpily, crossing her arms across her chest.

"A fuckin' _week_  on medical rest, are you shitting me? Fuckin asshole isn't even a certified doctor and he's bossin' me around." She grumbles, Bucky snorting in amusement.

"C'mon it's not so bad, you've got me." He says hopefully, Alex looking at him with a dead expression.

"A week with your ugly mug? Sounds like torture." She jokes, still trying to sound annoyed. Bucky gives an over exaggerated gasp, placing a hand on his chest.

"I'll have you know my "ugly mug" could sweep the dames off their feet back in the day." He snaps, words obviously lacking any malice.

"When was that, 1890? Dude, we get it, you and Steve are older than dirt, you ain't gotta remind us." Alex retorts, Bucky letting out an amused snort before gently shoving Alex.

"Smartass." He snaps, grinning widely.

"Asshole." Alex retorts, grinning back as she rebounds and nudges his right arm with her left shoulder.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ебена мать - Holy shit  
> Ратник - Warrior  
> Vykalri - ???
> 
> Dis was a bit of a big chapter, but hey! Alex and Bucky are joking around with one another! Character relationship development, huzzah!


	6. Learning From Memories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ZeroEnderborn is such a great Beta to me y'all, you have no idea. 
> 
> There's also art in the endnotes of Alex! :D

She was nearly halfway through her medical rest off missions, but Alex was going stir-crazy. She'd finished all of the work on the alien weaponry she had in her lab, meeting Tony Stark to then immediately be thrown into some sort of "test" ~~which she apparently passed with flying colors.~~ , and when fixing the movement on Bucky's arm that first day he'd come back 30 minutes later looking like an excited dog. He raved about how good of a job she did while Alex would half pay attention and give him appropriate 'mhm's when they were needed. He would eventually just end up going on a two-hour talk about how his day was so far, conversations he had with his teammates, and normal conversational talk that Alex half-heartedly tried to reply to when her half listening self got snagged on a statement that didn't seem right. It took threatening to punch him for him to finally leave, only for him to promise to be back the next day.

But at almost 11:30 in the evening, she was restlessly turning to-and-fro in bed. This whole "resting" thing was meant for her to relax and take a breather, but Alex couldn't help but feel keyed up and antsy. So of course, there was really only one thing she knew would help. She got into some workout clothes and went to the community gym for everyone who wasn't an Avenger. For some reason, it was found necessary that there be two different gyms on the two separate floors, but Alex really wasn't one to complain. She didn't really know how weird the Avengers routines were, but after hearing from cadets when she was transferred here Bucky was one to frequent said gym every now and then after a nightmare, she'd rather jump off the nearest bridge than have the first time she goes be the rare chance he has one let him know she already wasn't handling the break well. She's seen his faked sympathetic look enough to replicate it, at this point.

Walking in the gym she was relieved to find it empty as she made her way over to the section of punching bags. Wrapping her flesh hand her gaze seemed to flick over the hanging bag in front of her almost analytically like she was planning her moves prematurely before she finished wrapping and got to stretching.

 

* * *

 

30 minutes pass before two sets of footsteps can be heard heading towards the gym.

"Steve, you really didn't have to join me." Bucky says, trying to hide his blatant annoyance that his friend had decided to follow him with his golden retriever optimism and energy.

"I wanted to, Buck. Yeah sure, you had a nightmare, but you _do_  need someone to spot you." Steve says happily, Bucky sighing and rolling his eyes. They arrive at the gym entrance and Bucky grumpily opens the door glaring at Steve before shutting his eyes and sighing. Steve walks in and stops a pace or two inside as Bucky turns and heads in behind him.

"I don't need someone to... spot... me..." He had opened his eyes to find Alex is the only one in the gym, and the expressionless look on her face matched with the cold hard stare she's giving the battered bag should be nothing concerning, but it's the obvious show of her scars, the seam of flesh and metal on her arm, the glistening of sweaty skin over flexing muscles, and the overall toned look of her body in general showing with each well-aimed punch and kick to the beaten up bag had Bucky's mouth go dry. He can't help but watch her. Seeing her like this, even if it's training, he can definitely see what Thor was talking about. The amount of power she has shows in the force she smacks the bag with, and how worse for wear that bag is. It looks like every hit is controlled, planned, with her eyes scanning over the slightly swinging bag when she stops to push the hair from her eyes.

"C'mon Buck." Steve says, the smack on his chest snapping him back to reality.

"Oh-uh. Just... hold on." Bucky says, holding up a finger and not even looking at him before moving towards Alex. He misses the confused look Steve gives him as his baby blues follow his friend along his path, but only can look more shocked when Bucky simply looks from her to the bag before going behind it and holding it. His sudden appearance seems to startle Alex, her visibly jumping and giving a "Jesus Christ almighty" before ripping a headphone out of one of her ears and holding a hand to her chest.

"You really want to get punched, don't you? Jesus!" Alex snaps, Bucky smirking at her.

"That's assuming your fist can reach high enough, dollface." Bucky purrs, Alex trying to hide a smile as her eyes narrow.

"Flirtatious nicknames will get you nowhere, Barnes." She snaps, Bucky raising an eyebrow.

"So is saying I'm glad to see ya pretty face here outta the picture? Or..." Bucky asks, and the faint blush that accompanies her glare makes him grin. The sound of someone's throat clearing causes Alex and Bucky to look at that direction, Bucky seeming sorta shocked Steve was still here.

"I thought we were supposed to spar, Buck, not have me watch you try to make a pass." Steve says unenthusiastically, and Bucky can only look at him with a mischievous smirk.

"C'mon Stevie, lighten up. 'Sides, not like I mean to. She's too cute not to."

"I'm not cute." Alex grumbles, Bucky looking to see her arms are crossed and she's pouting.

"Yeah, you are," Bucky starts, pinching Alex's cheek. "Prolly couldn't hurt a fly."

Alex's hand suddenly smacks him off her cheek before she looks at him with a look he can't read. "Wanna fuckin' bet?"

"You challengin' me?" Bucky asks, a smirk spreading on his face as he crosses his arms. Alex meanwhile walks forward to stand and face him, her hands moving to rest on her hips.

"Y'know what, yeah. Yeah, I am. I wouldn't miss wiping that smug fucking smirk off your face for the world." Alex snarks, Bucky grinning at her.

"How about we go a few rounds? Let you get a fair chance." He purrs, Alex smirking and raising a brow.

"Sounds good to me, but how about we make it interesting?" Alex asks, Bucky raising his own eyebrows in interest.

"Oh? How so?" He asks, Alex shrugging slyly.

"I was thinking a little wager." She says, Bucky taking a step closer.

"It's simple, first person to tap out loses." Alex says, Bucky looking her up and down.

"If I win, I want you to cook me breakfast every day of my medical leave in whatever I want you to wear that day." Alex says, Bucky looking unimpressed at her side of the wager.

"I... forget to eat breakfast a lot." Alex adds shyly, looking down at the floor and rubbing the nape of her neck.

"Alright. And if I win?" Bucky asks, Alex giving a thoughtful "hmmm" before she visibly gets an idea and looks at him.

"You beat me, I'll honestly answer any question you ask me. No deadline attached." She states, Bucky seeming to like it by the grin that slowly stretches across his face.

"Alright, deal." Bucky says, holding out his hand for Alex to take it and they shake on it.

 

* * *

 

"Do I _actually_ have to wear this?" Bucky asks, sounding somewhat whiny. He holds up a frilly pink bib apron with white polka dots and a bow on the right side.

Alex is sat on a stool in the wide entrance of the kitchen next to the right counter, her elbow resting on the granite countertop and her chin perched on the palm of her hand. It's around 9 a.m. and Bucky absolutely hates how amused and smug she looks.

"What did I say you'd do if I won?" Alex asks, looking smug as all hell as Bucky glares at her.

"Be glad today's day 4 of 7 and that I took pity on you. It could be _much_  worse." Alex adds, Bucky giving an annoyed huff before pulling the strap that goes around the neck over his head before tying the straps in the back. Alex slaps a hand over her mouth as she lets out a snort, her shoulders hitching up as she desperately tries to hold in a laugh at how ridiculous he looks.

"You look fabulous, darling." She says, clearly very amused with the new look.

"You sure it doesn't make me look fat?" Bucky asks seriously, turning this way and that to give Alex different angles. She lets out a loud laugh, her right hand resting against her left collarbone with her head having fallen back. It's a warm and bright sound that he can't help but join in with a chuckle of his own, his eyes closing as he shakes his head.

"Oh fuck." Alex sighs, audibly still coming down from that bout of laughter while she lifts her head back to its normal position and wipes under the eyes that still sparkle with mirth.

"No Bucky, you look fantastic." Alex says, a warm and genuine smile brightening her face.

"What're you feeling this morning?" Bucky asks, moving to the pantry.

"Depends what you've got up here." She responds when Bucky stops and opens the pantry doors, Bucky giving an 'uhh' as he looks around at the pantry's contents.

"We've got mix for pancakes." Bucky suggests, looking back at Alex. She mulls the thought over before softly smiling.

"Sounds good to me. You know how not to burn them, yeah?" Alex asks jokingly as Bucky pulls the mix down, Bucky rolling his eyes.

"You know how not to burn them, yeah?" Bucky mocks in a high pitched voice before huffing in distaste. "You're a real jokester, y'know that?"

"Yeah, but I just want to make sure your cooking is nothing like your fighting." Alex says, Bucky punching out a sarcastic laugh.

"Oh how the temptation to burn them only grows." Bucky says, moving to the stove and setting the mix on the counter beside it as Alex simply just snickers. He gets the rest of the ingredients he needs and pulls out bowls, a whisk, a pan, and a spatula.

"Ya know, something's been bugging me since last night." Alex says, Bucky giving a "hmm" as he starts to grab the ingredients he goes to mix in the bowl he pulled out.

"Why did you seem so happy with your side of the wager?" Alex asks, Bucky stopping in his place.

"Well..." Bucky starts, sounding almost embarrassed.

"Well?" Alex asks, Bucky looking at her through his lashes.

"It... basically would've given me free rein to get to know you better." He says shyly, Alex's head moving back in slight shock.

"Bucky you don't need to a wager to get to know me better. I-I won't lie, there's a lot of shit in my life I'm not comfortable talking about with where we stand in our friendship, but I'm... I'm sure we can get there." Alex says, Bucky looking at her in surprise.

"Seriously?" Bucky asks quietly, Alex smiling softly and nodding.

"Yeah. You said it yourself, you want to get to know me better. I'm gonna be hanging around with you working on your arm, and if you guys think I work well with you we'll be teammates. It's really only fair." She says, shrugging.

"So you don't mind if I just ask you questions about yourself?" He asks, Alex huffing out air through her nose in amusement.

"I just said that, Barnes." She says with her eyebrows raised and her head tilting slightly.

"Cool..." Bucky says, his words drifting off into a comfortable silence. Five minutes pass of relative silence, the only noises being Bucky's work on making the batter.

"Alright. This has been bothering me since I heard it in the med bay." Bucky says, putting down the bowl of batter before turning towards Alex.

"That Vee-something word Mikhail called you." Bucky states, watching as she crosses her arms.

"Vykalri." She supplies, Bucky's eyebrows furrowing.

"Vie-kal-ree." Bucky replies, sounding out the word the same way she said it. Alex nods and softly smiles while giving an "mhm", leaning towards the counter to have her waist pressed against the edge of the counter.

"It's from an alien language called Arytaxsi." She explains, Bucky still looking confused.

"Ar-ie-tahk-si." Bucky mutters to himself, crossing his arms.

"It-uh-It means General. General as the military rank." Alex says hesitantly, Bucky seeming shocked.

"You're a General?" Bucky asks, almost amazed.

"Myself and a majority of the members in my unit were already a team prior to us being inducted into an official S.H.I.E.L.D. task force. I've known Tony and Jared for over 10 years. I'm their leader. I'm the person they look to for stability and a plan when everything goes to shit. I decide who goes on missions, I set up and supervise any and all training excercises, I run the whole fuckin' shebang. Mikhail has a history of healing soldiers in a war or battle scenario, so when he first joined us and saw how I lead he was quick to call me a General." Alex explains, Bucky looking to his boots and nodding.

"About Arytaxsi." Bucky says, looking at her again to see her eyebrows are raised.

"Could you tell me about it?" He asks, a tad bit sheepish.

"Where exactly do you want me to start?" Alex asks, looking a bit worn while she asks it.

"How about where it comes from. You said it's alien, and I'm interested in what alien stuff you know." Bucky says, plucking up the mixing bowl again to start stirring as he looks to her.

"If I were to tell you everything I know in terms of anything extraterrestrial we'd be here a _long_  time." Alex says, a smirk on her face.

"As of right now, you and I have got four days for you to teach me as much as you can." Bucky retorts with his own smirk to match, and Alex only chuckles and rolls her eyes.

"How about this. You finish those pancakes, we can go to my lab and I'll tell you about Arytaxsi AND what I know in terms of the people who speak it." She negotiates, and Bucky gives her a bright, excited smile.

"Deal!"

 

* * *

 

 

"So," Alex says through a mouthful of pancake before she swallows it down. "Arytaxsi is a really complex language in terms of prononciation when people who don't speak it fluently try to learn it. It combines letters that, in the English language, usually don't settle in the word like they should. For example, the word 'Winter' in Arytaxsi is 'Qermocari'."

"Ker-mo-karee...?" Bucky asks hesitantly, Alex smiling brightly and nodding.

"If you wanted to say Winter Soldier, it would be 'Qermocari Ashvidatzi', which when directly translated to English literally means 'Snow Soldier'. Like with all languages you get to take some liberties in the translations to English." Alex says, getting up from her office chair to walk to the holographic table in the middle of the room. She holds her left hand out in front of her at breast level, palm up, for Force to appear from thin air in a flicker of soft lavender light and more solid lavender colored sparkles.

"'Sup Boss?" Force asks, floating up to be face level with Alex.

"You mind projecting Model #4537 on the table for us?" Alex asks, Force's chassis tilting in silent question.

"I'm teaching." Is all Alex supplies her, Alex's gaze flicking to Bucky for a brief moment. Force catches the movement and turns to find Bucky sat on a stool next to the table. He gives her a brief wave in greeting.

"Oh. OOOOOOOOOOOOH!" Force says in understanding, turning to look back at Alex.

"Model projection, coming right up." Force adds in a suggestive tone, Alex rolling her eyes with an unamused look as Force turns to the table and with a beam of lavender that scans over the table the holographic plate turns on to be colored a lilas with a lavender glow. A planet is projected with a lavender tint, with oceans and landmasses and clouds.

"This right here is Remorra, which is where Arytaxsi is primarily spoken. Remorran's are a technologically advanced species and about 85% of the world population has some sort of ability that Earth would classify as "superhuman". Remorra is a well known planet for the buying and selling of wares through merchants, so most of the world population is either fluent or can comprehend and somewhat speak at least two languages due to the influx of different languages through consistent incoming space travelers looking for things to buy or sell." Alex says, spinning the planet with a flick of her finger.

"In account to the quote-unquote "superhuman" abilities the 85% has, only about 13% have two abilities, and only 1% have three or more abilities at their disposal that they can use at will." Force adds, Alex giving an 'mhm' in agreement.

"The thing with Remorrans is the've been around for a very, VERY long time. The farthest back they've found relating to early Remorran ancestors is dated to around 7 billion years after the Big Bang. The Solar System was formed 9 billion years after. So, they've been around a long time." Alex says, moving the planet to sit within Bucky's reach. He immediately starts moving it in wonder, being able to go past the atmosphere and clouds to see the details in the landmasses. The mountains and valleys and lakes and rivers. He was in awe of it, how there's another terrestrial planet out in our galaxy that not only supports life, but has intelligent beings living and thriving on it.

"But yeah-"

"Do you know Arytaxsi fluently?" Bucky interrupts, looking up at Alex with a near look of urgency.

"I'm fluent in many languages, why?" Alex replies suspiciously, her eyes narrowing a smidgen.

"Do you think you could teach me?" He asks, and Alex immediately looks shocked.

"... why?" She asks after a moment, Bucky looking at the planet projection.

"You apparently know enough of Remorra to have such a detailed model of the planet, and cared enough to know how far back the history of life on Remorra went. Remorra is obviously important to you, and apparently Arytaxsi is something some of your team knows. I want to know too." Bucky says, Alex hesitating for a good few moments looking conflicted.

"I'll think about it." She finally says, Bucky giving a pleased and hopeful smile and he gives a solitary nod.

"Besides, you don't even know what the Ienki is."

"Eee-en-key?"

"Ancient Arytaxsi, written in runes chiseled into stone and engraved in items to make them able to do whatever the runes call for. They don't use magic from a user, but magic from the world around them. Now that? That I have no issues showing you." Alex says with a smile, Bucky smiling back.

"I'm down." He says, placing his forearms on the edge of the table to lean forward where he's sat.

"Then let's get started, shall we?" Alex asks, rubbing her hands together with a grin on her face.

 

 

She'd teach him everything he should know of the ancient language, her teachings leading well into the afternoon with the two talking, laughing, and joking with one another all the while. But even in this lighthearted moment evil lurks in the shadows, preparing for its opportunity to strike.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alex Harper Art I did, so you know what she looks like in case you wanted to draw her. 
> 
>  
> 
> <https://itsjustforce.tumblr.com/post/182429250108/alexis-alex-harper-my-idiot-oc-drawn-inbased>  
> 


	7. It Has Begun

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go, the beginning of the road to the more off-canon side of things. As always, thank you to my Beta ZeroEnderborn for making sure this chapter fits. Chapter 8 is finna be cute as fuck, y'all ain't even READY.

When the Avengers were called about a mutant causing havoc on the tarmac of LaGuardia Airport, for Tony, Natasha, and Bucky to be picked out specifically, Alex had sent him off with a common river stone with the Ienki rune of protection claiming "Keep it in your metal hand just in case, 'cuz you may need it. Something's off."

Bucky wasn't expecting the mutant, a male with one purple eye and one a deep amber, to nearly wipe the floor with them. He frequented using Tony as a club with his hold on Tony's suit, and no matter what they tried he seemed to counter flawlessly. It was when he tried latching onto Bucky's arm to toss him aside did the two of them realize that a silver sort of forcefield covered his prosthetic, seemingly blocking the man's abilities to take hold of his arm. His eyes meet Bucky's, and how fast emotions flit through his eyes nearly scares Bucky. Confused to shock to pure fury, the emotion lighting a fire in those eyes that, if it were real, could probably melt the beams of a skyscraper.

"Hrastar Ienki marae." The man snarls, Bucky's eyebrows furrowing in confusion. The man tosses Tony away, sending him barreling into Natasha before he starts a full on sprint towards Bucky. His eyes widen for a brief moment before he's backing up and firing, his bullets seeming to stop and meld into one another. He grabs the object when Bucky's clip runs out of ammo for it to morph into a sword. Bucky's in a brief panic, unsure what to do from here seeing metal goes to his advantage, until suddenly the man is on him, landing a punch to his jaw that sends him reeling back. He rebounds to barely just block a sword slash with his metal arm, the clashing sound of metal on metal piercing through the air as sparks form between the moving blade and the plate of the appendage. Bucky's then on the defensive, blocking sword strikes with his arm while landing hits when he can. It's a kick to the chest that sends him falling onto his back, the river stone flying from his hand to skid across the rough tarmac and stop a foot away. He turns towards it and goes to get up and scramble to get it before a booted foot presses into his right shoulder and forces him back onto his back. He looks up with wide eyes to find he is face to face with the point of the blade.

"Yumishate winu'kare mo shindure." The man snaps, a dead look in his eyes. He raises the blade and goes to swing, Bucky screwing his eyes shut as his metal arm darts up to block it from hitting him. But the sound of moving ground and an "oof!" causes the pressure of the foot on his chest to disappear and the strike to never come. His eyes slowly open to find the man is gone, only for tarmac and dirt to curve vertically above him. He lifts his head to see the man is a good few feet away, getting up on his hands and knees for blood to slowly drip to the tarmac from his nose.

_It's badly broken._ His brain supplies, but he's seemingly not the only threat. He sits up slightly and looks back around the dirt to find Alex is walking his way, eyes angrily glaring at the man. Her hair is tied back to show she's wearing a simple silver circlet that rests in the middle of her forehead. She wears a turquoise overcoat with the hood raised, stopping around the top of her calves and the form-fitting long sleeves leading to gloved hands, with a brown belt around the waist holding the two sides of the coat closed beneath the leather. She has a silver-colored chestplate underneath the coat, with a dark grey pair of form-fitting pants and black boots.

  
_"I found something out in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s old files you guys may want to see." Natasha says, walking in their door with a manila folder in hand._

_"What?" Steve asks,_ Natasha _putting the folder down on the coffee table of his and Bucky's shared floor with an audible 'slap'._

_"Some information on our_ enigma. _" Natasha says, and Bucky's eyes widen. Seeing the folder was nearest him, he picked it up and opened it to be met with a black-and-white picture of the backside of someone in a lightly colored trenchcoat, dark pants, and even darker boots. He handed it to Steve absentmindedly for him to take a look_ as _his eyes scanned the next photo. It was color this time but grainy, yet the same person stands over a group of bodies with a staff in hand. Bucky guesses it had to be around seven or eight feet tall judging by the way it towers over the person, and the jacket is actually a turquoise color. He runs a finger against the figure, and even though it's grainy he can see resemblances Alex and this mystery figure have, mainly in what he can make of the body type and the way they hold themself._

_"S.H.I.E.L.D. didn't have any records about Harper when I looked, which confused me at first, but when remembering how secretive her identity was I dug in a different direction. I got this, and it damn near fits the timeline for the stories she's told us so far." Natasha says, Bucky handing Steve the picture he was looking at to be met with an old sheet of paper with SSR printed in the corner._

_"Went by the codename Enigma, funny enough, their status became active around 1943 and worked discreetly trying to push back German forces for the Allies to get a firmer grasp on victory against Germany and, in turn, HYDRA. Were active until around the late '90s before they retired. 19 years later, a woman going by the codename is wiping out HYDRA bases in America left and right, with a supposed metal hand that could crush the same titanium alloy Barnes' old arm used to be made of like it was paper. She was instated to S.H.I.E.L.D. and the trail stops." Natasha says, and by the end both Bucky and Steve are pale._

>   
>  _**"Been five years, the anniversary was two weeks ago." She says, voice almost melancholy.** _
> 
> _**"Mind if I ask how it happened?" He asks and watches how Alex stiffens, almost bristling.** _
> 
> _**"Bad accident." She snaps, her tone suggesting it was a sore subject and the discussion about it was over. But on top of that, it suggests to Bucky that it was more than just some bad accident to her, but he knows better than to pry.** _
> 
>  
> 
> _**"I think you underestimate my tenacity to do the actions I bring up, Sergeant Barnes. Especially if it involves HYDRA." She says cold and unamused, and Bucky would be lying if he said that harsh, calculating gaze from her heterochromic eyes didn't send a slight shiver down his spine.** _
> 
>   
>  **_"I don't like using my abilities if I don't have to, but that sorta warranted some usage. Put some metal to cover my left hand and forearm to try and like, block the attacks and punch him to get him off me, but he just took the arm by the wrist, held it down with his booted foot, and just started hacking at the area above where the metal stopped. Which so happened to be my elbow and the bottom portion of my humerus, where my prosthetic stops at now. I'd lost a good amount of blood by that time so my memory about what happened next was a little hazy, but apparently, he finally hacked it off when my dad and some other people with guns kicked the door in. There were some gunshots but they were a bit murky, and before I passed out my dad appeared above me like... trying to keep me conscious or something." Alex says, obviously choked up as tears roll down her cheeks._ **
> 
> **_"Holy fuck..." Bucky whispers, obviously horrified._ **

 

_Bucky finds his mouth is dry. What happened to Alex happened five years ago when she was 18, which meant she was born sometime in the late 90s. She'd never mentioned family_ besides _her father, but judging by the reports the original Enigma was a female. Was Enigma her mother? If she was, why wasn't she there at all in the story? Did something happen to her too, and Alex didn't tell him? He couldn't help but wonder._

 

"I told you to keep it in your hand, Barnes." Alex snaps, meeting his eyes for a moment and with a sweep of her hand, which was glowing with a dirty yellow color, the dirt and tarmac returns to the way it was originally.

"He caught me off guard, it flew off when I hit the floor. Sue me." He snaps, standing up when Alex stops beside him. He darts off and grabs it, looking back to see the tense stand-off between Alex and the man.

"When I got word of the mutant with your eye colors I got a little confused, I must say." Alex says, the man looking her over with narrowed eyes.

"You attack a populated place in _my_ turf, you threaten the safety of others and our secret. Why." She states, pulling out a palm-sized cylinder from the side of her belt.

"Your destruction." The man snarls, his English murky and heavy with a weird accent. Alex clenches her jaw, her eyes slightly narrowing.

"Furto miykari run'kasha fieyotari raa." Alex snaps, the man grinning widely.

"Yhuko miyoko rtesh, _**Cakeshi Houmo**_." The man taunts, Alex baring her teeth in a snarl. In a split second, the cylinder extends to a staff and she's launching herself at the man. He launches towards her as well, the sword returning to his hand. The tarmac lifts beneath Alex for her to jump off the edge and fall with her fist raised, easily blocking the sword with her staff and punching his face with her fist. He staggers back as Alex's feet hit the concrete, Alex not giving him any time to recover before she's on him. She sends a kick to the other side of his face, sending him turning and falling back. She stands over him, pushing him on his back and placing pressure on the wrist of the hand holding the sword with her boot, holding the tip of the staff near his face.

"Rieshta cakni, furto miyakari runukasha fieyotari raa!" She snarls, Bucky watching the exchange with wide eyes. Static crackles through the air with the tension and lines of electricity come forth and move along the first few inches of the staff.

"Ratashi." The man growls, and Alex must give an expression he finds amusing because he grins at her, teeth tinged red with blood.

_Rah-tah-shee._

"He's among us, and he's coming for you. Not even your little _unit_ , your _subjects_ , or your _protege_ can save you." He growls, letting out a bark of a laugh. She waits for a moment before she places the tip of the staff on his chest, him letting out a pained scream before he eventually falls unconscious. Alex pulls the staff back, the electricity seemingly evaporating away before it shrinks back to its seemingly original size and she clips it back on her hip. She turns and looks at Bucky, removing the boot on the man's wrist for her to just place a boot on his chest instead.

"Get Tony and Natasha in the airport, right behind you guys I got my team's medical already helping anyone injured. Get yourselves checked out, I know you're gonna have some injuries. I already contacted S.H.I.E.L.D., and they should be here any minute, so I'll wait here with him." She says, Bucky looking distantly at the man and nodding.

"Who's Ratashi...?" He asks, looking up at Alex to see a guarded off look in her eyes.

"Get them inside." She says, gesturing to Tony and Natasha with her head, who are starting to get up with a groan. Bucky looks from them to Alex, his eyes narrowing as he points to her.

"This isn't over." Alex gives a defeated huff as her head falls forward.

"Of course it isn't."

 

* * *

 

Bucky's sat on one of the waiting chairs in the terminal, watching as S.H.I.E.L.D. blocks off the affected area of damage the man caused. They just recently carted him off, and Alex is nowhere to be seen.

"Sergeant Barnes," The person healing his scrapes states, him looking to the male with his eyebrows raised.

"You're all set." They say, voice gently slurring before they give a hiccup. They place the red short sleeved cardigan back from where it was falling off their right shoulder, to then push their sandy brown bangs behind their ears.

"Thanks, uh-"

"Jamie. Jamie Woods." They state proudly, holding the edges of the cardigan and moving them up and down like it was a blazer.

"Jamie." Bucky finishes, and a loud "WHAT!" catches both of their attention. Antonio looks incredulously at Alex, whose hood is down and shows off her tied back hair while she's pinching the bridge of her nose. Bucky looks to Jamie and excuses himself before getting up and heading towards the two of them. His superhuman hearing catches onto their conversation as he approaches.

"What the fuck, Alex!" Antonio snaps, Alex removing the hand from her nose for her to hold her hands up defensively.

"Look,"

"No! Don't you "Look" me! Do you know how serious that is?!" Antonio asks, his voice rising in volume.

"Yes! I do! And look, it helped him! If Bucky didn't have it and unknowingly became a distraction Tarek would've pummeled the three of them into the tarmac. It won't hurt him to know that shit, 'cuz it's not like I spilt some family secrets!" Alex retorts, her hands gesturing around wildly.

"Look, seeing I told him all I did AND give him that stone it means something. I _trust_ him, Zero. I know you might not, but I do. Just give me a chance, and give him the benefit of the doubt." Alex adds on in a much calmer tone, and Antonio (Zero???) seems to deflate. They both notice Bucky approaching and they look in each other's eyes, Alex having a determined look in hers. Antonio (Zero???) sighs, his eye sliding shut before he looks back at Alex.

"If this backfires, it's on you. I'm not gonna be watching if it blows up in your face." Antonio/Zero snaps, and Alex smirks.

"I'd truly be expecting nothing less." She coos, Antonio/Zero narrowing his eye at her before turning and walking away, heading towards where Mikhail is healing a battered Natasha. Alex turns to Bucky as he stops beside her, Alex crossing her arms.

"I'm gonna come back to what I heard because that's not important to me right now." Bucky starts, and Alex gives an amused huff.

"First off." Bucky states, holding up his index finger.

"Your turf?" Alex lets out a loud laugh.

"Avengers protect the world from life-threatening shit like aliens or whatever, but my unit and I protect the world from everything else. So yeah, my turf." She says with a shrug and a smile on her face.

"Second off, who was that guy?" Alex's smile falls off her face.

"His name is Tarek." She says vaguely.

"He knows you." Bucky says, Alex gently sighing.

"Yeah."

"He called you Cakeshi Houmo, what does that mean?" He asks, Alex visibly cringing.

"It means The Creator's Reincarnation." She replies quietly, seemingly nervous.

"Didn't Thor call you The Creator?"

"I also said it was a long story."

"How about we not talk about that right now, please." She adds on, almost pleading, and Bucky relents.

"You were talking to each other in Arytaxsi, weren't you?" Bucky asks for her to nod and give an 'mhm'.

"Is that all?" Alex squeaks out after a moment, looking up at Bucky through her lashes.

"Who's Ratashi."

"Nobo-"

"Alex, who's Ratashi." Bucky snaps, raising his voice to talk over her in order to interrupt her. Alex looks around before taking hold of his bicep and pulling him out of earshot from the crowd.

"Look, don't say that name around my unit and don't you dare tell them what Tarek told me, got it?" She jabs his chest with an index finger.

"Why." He states, seeing as Alex grows increasingly annoyed.

"Because we already have enough shit to worry about, alright?" Alex's voice is lowered.

"You told Tony you trusted me, yeah? So just tell me."

"It's not-!" Alex says loudly, stopping herself, squeezing her eyes shut, and letting out a short growl as her hand's grip onto the roots of her hair, messing up the ponytail by pulling up the hair.

"It's not that simple." She says finally, her voice level and calm. One of her hands moves to her hip while the other still is in her hair, and she looks at him so exasperated.

"All you need to know right now is that Ratashi is a really, _really_ bad guy. Okay? He's not someone you need to worry about." She says, Bucky crossing his arms.

"If he wants to hurt you, I'm gonna worry." He states matter-of-factly, and that seems to stop Alex in her tracks. She looks at him with eyes widened in shock, her face lax and lips slightly parted. She's flabbergasted.

"Apparently trust is a big thing for you to give, and after you saved my ass out there I can safely say I trust you too. You're my friend, Alex, and friends don't just willingly sit on the sidelines while another is in danger." Bucky states factually, watching as it takes Alex a moment to function again before she's clearing her throat and looking out the large windows that would show the planes and workers.

"Ratashi... is someone who's hard to explain at the moment. You'd need much more context than what you have now to even try to understand him. At this minute, I'm... hesitant... to tell you."

"Why? What's holding you back?"

"The fact anyone who remotely dives into the rabbit hole that is my cause or knows who I am... what I know... is destined to die really, really painfully. That's why I'm so hesitant with you knowing. You've... you've been through enough as is. Now can we just... drop it? Please?"

That causes him to pause, and really look at Alex. She has an air of exhaustion around her that looks bone-deep like this discussion just took everything out of her.

"Alright. Alright." He walks forward, placing his hands on her shoulders. He feels the muscles relax at his words, her nodding mutely before looking down.

"How'd you get here so fast, anyway? The compound's like an hour away by car." Alex looks up, a smirk on her face and her giving him a shrug.

"I was in the neighborhood."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit to AbstractKat for drawing her OC Jamie! Follow her on Tumblr!


	8. The Mind Was Made to Illuminate the Heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey look, the cute fluff chapter is upon us! Chapter 9 is gonna be... something. Just something. I haven't written anything for it yet so I'm not sure what I'm gonna do haha
> 
> Love to ZeroEnderborn for being my wonderful and reliable Beta. Here's his Tumblr because he doesn't have an AO3 account. https://zero-endierien.tumblr.com/
> 
> The title is a lyric snippet taken from Sleeping At Last's song Overture

Art of Alex that Zero commissioned from our friend Broom! You can find him [here](https://www.instagram.com/smokeybrooms/)! 

* * *

 

 

"Rogers, can you bring this soldering iron kit to Harper? Heard she was looking to get it back but I've been busy."

"Sure To-"

"I'll do it! I need to go see her anyway." Bucky interrupts, grabbing the tool and nearly sprinting out of the room with Tony and Steve looking at him leave in confusion and near disbelief.

"Should we like, see what that's about?" Tony asks hesitantly, looking at Steve for Steve to give a detached 'uhhhhhh'.

"Y'know what, no. Never seen him like this so let's just... let it happen." Steve finally says.

"Good, I didn't feel like dealing with that. He's your tin soldier."

"He's not-! He's his own person!"

"Who follows you around like a lost dog."

"I-You-Whatever, Tony! Just... show me the designs you've made up."

 

* * *

 

"Knock knock!" Bucky calls, Alex looking up from her work to see Bucky walking in. She smiles brightly at him upon seeing him, even though she looks dead tired.

"Hey Buck, wassup?" She sounds a tad bit drowsy but happy nonetheless.

"I come bearing gifts." He smirks as he holds up the soldering iron kit he got from Tony. Tiredness seems to evaporate from her face as she grins widely. She nearly vaults over the worktable on her way to him as she nearly sprints to him.

"I've been needing this for like, three days!" She says excitedly, taking it from his hands to bounce up and down by her knees. In her excitement, she looks at Bucky, puts a hand on his opposite cheek, and pulls his head to her to then smack a kiss onto the other cheek. Bucky's eyes widen and his cheeks begin to flush as Alex hurries back to her worktable and to what she was working on. Bucky's brain has stalled, pouty lips open slightly as he blinks quite a bit, his brain desperately trying to catch up while he's still slightly bent. You could relate his mind to the Windows blue screen mixed with the Internet Dial-Up tone, he was so caught off guard. Alex hasn't noticed, immediately having gotten to work on what she had been building when she reaches the worktable. When Bucky gets his bearings back he finds her sitting on her stool completely set up. Everything she might need from the kit is set on the table meticulously, a magnifying glass has come from somewhere and is sat in front of the machine as she works with the plugged-in soldering iron and what Bucky recognizes as a soldering station has also shown up on the table. Bucky makes his way to the table, intrigued, and finds it's a bunch of parts that look to make some sort of electronic.

"What is that?" He asks, his eyebrows furrowing and one corner of his lips turns up.

"Huh? Oh! It's actually the remote for a prototype I've been working on for a while now. Basically, it uses the same technology as S.H.I.E.L.D.'s holographic mask, but instead, it's compacted and made into a set of synthetic contacts. Basically, I pop one or both in, and with this remote I can change the color of whichever iris the contact is over." She looks at Bucky, looking extremely proud of herself.

"I've been tinkering with it for around four years or so, just tweaking here and there and updating it, but it's served me well."

Bucky seems interested and amazed, "So you can just change it to whatever color you want, whenever you want, as long as you have them in?"

"Exactly. I only have like, four eye colors saved in the databank for me to use, but that's really all I need. Brown, the same blue as my right eye, the same green as my left eye, and hazel."

"When you're finished doing whatever you're doing can you show me? This is... really interesting."

"I don't see why not. I have to put them in anyway to test and make sure the maintenance work I did is actually working. But that may... take me a lil' bit. The reason there's no screen is that I'm waiting for Stark to be free so I can get his advice on getting the menu and shit on a transparent medium. Something like his computer monitors or his "transparent cellphone" he had a few years back."

"Tony's a genius, I'll give him credit. I'm sure he'd be able to give you tips."

And with that, a silence falls between the two, only interrupted by the sound of the soldering iron soldering wires. Bucky seems antsy, like he needs to get something off his chest, and Alex tries not to be distracted by it.

"Uh-" He starts, Alex pulling the soldering iron away to look up at him through her lashes with her eyebrows raised. "So, apparently Tony's made it mandatory we go to some charity gala tomorrow night, something about good publicity or whatever, and I was wondering if you'd... be my plus one? It's not exactly what I originally had planned, but it works I guess. I'd _wanted_  to properly thank you for savin' my hide the other day at LaGuardia, and... honestly I'm a lil' tired of showin' up at those things alone."

Alex smirks before looking back down at her work. "You sure you aren't inviting me to see me all dolled up, Sarge?"

"No, but it'll be a definite plus. Finally get me a pretty dame to scare away the rest lookin' for a story to gloat to their friends about."

Alex snickers, putting the soldering iron in the holder on the soldering station before setting both of her hands on the work desk and looking at him with a smirk.

"What kinda attire we talking?"

 

* * *

 

After informing her of the detail, getting her approval to be his date, and getting her number to "text her what time they were leaving" Bucky had immediately enlisted Wanda and Natasha's help to get the perfect suit. Yes, it was black and white attire, but he didn't just want to borrow a suit from Steve. He wanted to show how he could clean up, that he was actually prepared for functions like this.

"I don't see exactly _why_  we're here. You could just borrow a suit from Steve like you usually do." Nat says, Wanda glaring at her.

"This is special to him, Nat." She then stage whispers, "He's got a date this time."

That seems to get Natasha's attention, looking at him surprised but a look of mirth and... relief? "Who are you and where's Barnes?" Natasha jokes, Bucky rolling his eyes.

"I do have a date, yeah. I-I wanna show her I know how to present myself, and I think getting my own suit is a good start." He nervously plays with his fingers.

"Who's coming with you?" Wanda asks, seeming genuinely curious.

"Alex." Bucky smiles, and his face glows with it. Natasha looks shocked, while Wanda is visibly elated.

"Really?! Bucky, that's great! I'd heard you two had gotten close but I didn't know you were _this_ close with her! Do you have an idea what suit color you want to go with?" Wanda asks him, nearly bouncing up and down on the couch cushion.

"It's black and white attire, Wanda, I don't exactly have many color choices." He teases, only for Wanda to blow off the comment.

"Bucky, Bucky, Bucky, you have so much to learn. There are _plenty_ of choices to make when it comes to a suit. And, we can actually get you a suit that fits and isn't near splitting at the seams." Wanda jokes with a smirk, standing up.

"We can go today, get the hassle done and over with so you aren't in a panic tomorrow trying to find one. I'm sure Tony wouldn't miss a bit of cash." She looks to Natasha. "You wanna come with?"

"You know what? Sure. Why not." Natasha replies with a shrug, standing up at the same time Bucky does. "Shouldn't be too bad of a trip."

 

* * *

 

Bucky stands with the group at Avengers Tower, looking at the chat message on his phone that he'd sent to Alex two minutes and 32 seconds ago. (Yes, he was counting.) Alex refused to tell him any details as to what she was wearing, only that her gown was white, so in natural Bucky Barnes style he's wearing a full black suit and tie. His long hair is slicked back and tied into a neat little knot at the nape of his neck, his dress shoes pristinely shined, and his metal hand covered by a black leather fingerless glove.

"So," Thor says, Bucky looking up with slightly wide eyes to meet Thor's electric blue ones as he walks to Bucky's side. He's got an easy, pleased smile on his face, his short blond hair coiffed in an elaborately messy way, wearing a white suit without a tie and has the first two buttons of his black dress shirt undone, the fabric hugging his frame nicely. "I heard you managed to convince Lady Alex to accompany you to tonight's gala."

"There wasn't much convincing on my end. Really her requirements for saying yes were alcohol and dancing, and knowing how these go there'll be plenty of both."

"She's a woman of simple taste." Thor muses, Bucky softly smiling in response.

"She and I talk quite often, you know. We've become very close in the years following the Chitauri attack here." Thor says suddenly, a distant smile on his face as he looks ahead of him.

"Many years ago her mother came to Asgard searching for supplies and any information on a hospitable planet she and her people could stay. Her reasoning for that, I was not certain of at that time, but the time she DID spend on Asgard were moments I'll never forget." He has a saudade tone to his words, a melancholic expression on his face.

"She had a soul stronger than any warrior I'd met, and the way she fought was just as fierce. Lady Alex is the spitting image of her, so much so it can become hard for me to tell if that's Lady Alex or her mother playing a trick on me." Thor looks to him. "She is fond of you, Barnes, and I trust you will make sure she is cared for. Her team and I can only save her from trouble for so long."

Thor smiles, claps Bucky on the shoulder, and moves away to talk to Steve, Sharon, and Sam, who just came out from the elevator from Steve's floor where they got ready. With them arriving that just leaves Alex and Tony, who is known to take a while. A primadonna? Tony Stark? Absolutely not.

"I'll leave you to your task then, I still have yet to greet Lady Wanda and The Vision." He hears Thor say, and when looking over he watches as Thor moves away from Steve, Sam, and Sharon to go see Wanda and Vision. The smiles Sam and Steve give him though immediately make him nervous. They head straight for him, and he quickly shuts off his phone and pockets it.

"Well, well, well. Thor tells us _you_  managed to get a date tonight." Sam coos, sidling up beside Bucky and nudging his arm. "So, who's the mystery lady, huh? She come from the same Disney film as you or are you just an Elsa without an Anna."

Bucky rolls his eyes, "Not like you've never told _that_  joke before."

Sam grins and shrugs, "What can I say, if a joke works it doesn't hurt to use it again."

"Joking aside," Steve interrupts, Bucky looking to see he's looking at Bucky with a pleased smile. The faint sound of the elevator chiming that the car has arrived goes unnoticed. "I'm happy you finally found someone you feel comfortable enough around to bring around us."

"Thanks, Steve." Bucky gives a shy smile. The sound of heels headed towards them and Alex's apologetic and distracted tone catches their attention.

"God, Buck, I am SO sorry I'm a little late, traffic was fucking... awful..." Alex's sentence dies off when she looks up from her white jeweled clutch to meet Bucky's form, both of her eyes being the same pale green/grey of her left eye. Steve, Sam, and Bucky are looking at her with their mouth's hanging open, and Sharon is both in awe and shock. Alex wears a flowy white gown with the bodice being made from what appears to be leaves with little rhinestones, her hair up in a braided updo with strands of hair falling haphazardly, flawless makeup consisting of silver eyeshadow and a pinkish-coral matte lipstick, a silver necklace with a star pendant, and white pumps. Her lips part slightly as she takes in Bucky's appearance.

"Wow, Alex you look... stunning." Bucky says at a loss for words. Alex shyly smiles and tucks a lock of hair behind her ear as she gives a meek 'thank you'. She walks forward to stand in front of him to adjust his tie.

"You don't look so bad yourself, Bucky. I can understand why you'd want to bring me along now, I'd not be able to resist you either." Alex says, almost teasingly, and Bucky's cheeks flush. Steve can't stop the wide grin that spreads across his face.

"Seems you met your match, huh Buck?" Steve asks, bumping Bucky's side with his elbow. Bucky doesn't respond, the two seemingly lost as they commit the look of the other to memory. Sharon gets a knowing smile on her face as she tugs Steve away, saying something about "letting those two lovebirds be". Sam smirks as he follows the two, totally planning on teasing Bucky about this later.

 

* * *

 

 

They were an hour into the charity gala and Bucky has refused to leave Alex's side. Most of the people wanting to talk to him were government officials and people with money, but the men seem to be quickly enraptured by Alex's beauty. Which, to Bucky, was understandable. He may be slightly using her as a shield against women but he also can't help but admire how gorgeous Alex looks tonight. It was when Bucky was playing nice with a senator that he realized Alex had vanished, and a quick, startled scan of the room has him finding her talking to a familiar face. Bucky quickly excuses himself, a smile slowly taking his features as he gets ever closer.

"I still can't thank you enough for the vibranium you traded with us, the sheer amount of technology we've been able to upgrade with it has sent us skyrocketing forward much faster than before." Alex chirps, absolutely beaming. King T'Challa puts a hand on her shoulder comfortingly.

"Your alliance and knowledge are worth far more than that small amount of vibranium, Little Sun." He muses, Alex visibly blushing.

"You're just saying that because the surplus of crops for trade in Nokkabi are booming." She teases, King T'Challa moving his hand away to hold both up defensively.

"That is definitely a plus." He grins, Alex giggling in response.

"Your Highness." Bucky greets, both Alex and T'Challa turning towards him for T'Challa to give an easy smile.

"White Wolf, it seems you are doing well." He says happily, shaking Bucky's hand in greeting.

"Getting by a day at a time." Bucky slides up next to Alex, shoving his hands into the pockets of his slacks.

"So you've met Alex before, huh?"

"I've known Little Sun for many years, her mother was a very dear friend to my family while she was alive and helped Wakanda in times of need. Her daughter is certainly no exception, always ready to help."

"Is that so?" Alex gently blushes as Bucky looks to her.

"I... help when I can."

As Bucky and T'Challa catch up, a sudden " _Alex!_ " in her head causes her to jump. Alex moves away a bit before muttering out a "what" as she turns her head slightly to the left.

" _So I finished the sweeping protocol and I've found that one of the rooms near the ballroom has a very high concentrate of nitro-methane and ammonium nitrate in it centered to one area. We should seriously check it out_."

"... You're sure?"

" _Very. There's too much metal around and too many people to detect any possible armed bad guys, but the chemical combination heavily screams out "high explosive" to me._ "

"Alright, let me see if I can get an opening to slip out unseen."

" _ **NO!**_ " Alex jumps at the quick, panicked answer. " _You should bring Bucky along, in case there are a lot of guys. That way you both can get rid of any far more efficiently instead of using your abilities and leaving a trail._ "

 

"Hey," Bucky's soft voice cuts through Alex's rapidly running thoughts like a boat through water. She looks to her left to see he's by her side, a hand on her lower back, and a concerned look on his face. "You alright?"

"I-uh-yeah." She mutters back, before looking to a similarly concerned T'Challa.

"Would you mind if we excused ourselves for a moment?" She asks sweetly, placing a hand gently on Bucky's bicep for T'Challa to politely nod.

"Of course."

Alex takes the hand Bucky placed on her lower back and almost _drags_ him to a seemingly less populated area in the ballroom near a wall.

"We've got a situation." Alex states with a hushed tone immediately after turning to look at Bucky.

"Yeah, we do, why are you acting so weird?"

"Because Force thinks there may be a bomb in the building."

"What?!" Bucky nearly shouts, Alex shushing him as people look to them in confusion from the outburst before returning to whatever they were doing originally.

"How the fuck did you figure _that_ out?!" Bucky says with a more hushed tone.

"One thing I've programmed Force to do is scan an area or building I'm in for any threats so I don't have to constantly worry about whether or not I'm about to be shot at all the time. Well, even from the ballroom she was able to detect that, in one of the nearby rooms, there's a very high concentrate of nitro-methane and ammonium nitrate in it. She can't determine much else with the sheer AMOUNT of people in here, but for her to even pick up on those compounds when they're in another room means it's probably pretty powerful."

"And she's _sure_? I mean, who would want to bomb a charity event?" Force manifests next to the right side of Alex's head, efficiently shielded from prying eyes unless they actively cared to look at her.

"My guess would be HYDRA. Think about it, you've got government officials, wealthy business people who could DEFINITELY have an influence on the public, _and_ the Avengers all in one place. It's not a smart idea in the slightest, but it's enough of an idea where their two working brain cells would think no one would find out."

"So... what do we do? We can't exactly go in there guns blazing without making a scene, and if there _is_ a bomb - who would even be able to disarm it?"

"You leave the bomb disarming to me, and _maybe_ Alex if there are wires that need to be cut. You and Alex are one of the few people who tend to be light on their feet, choosing stealth over immediate attacking. Plus, Alex trusts you, so if you follow our lead you'll be back here schmoozing important people in no time." With that, Force disappears in a shimmer of lavender light and sparkle. Bucky simply sighs as his head falls forward.

"It was honestly her idea to drag you into this." Alex says defensively, Bucky looking up at her through his lashes to see she looks legitimately apologetic.

"It's cool, just hate people can't take a fuckin' break." He says, lifting his head up to adjust his blazer.

"Lead the way, milady."

 

* * *

 

"Ya know, the one thing that makes me even remotely pleased about this is that we're gonna be kicking ass looking fresh as fuck." Alex whispers jokingly, the two sneaking down a corridor, Alex on the left side while Bucky's on the right, with Alex having her polearm and Bucky having a silenced pistol Alex had _somehow_ snuck in in her dress.

"The fact that **_that_**  makes you pleased instead of the fact we'd be saving hundreds of lives greatly concerns me." Bucky whispers back.

"Saving people is my occupation, and only once have I ever looked like a queen doing it. Let me have this." Alex snaps while looking at him with narrowed eyes. Force manifests next to Alex as they approach the first of the rooms, lavender eye scanning from left to right and back again in a sweeping motion.

"Now that we're away from those mass of people I'm getting a good reading on the area. A lot of copper wiring in these walls, Goddess sake." Alex's eyes and hands get a metal gray glow to them as Alex looks around.

"What are you doing?" Bucky asks, seeming genuinely curious why she's using her powers.

"Looking." She responds curtly, Bucky's eyebrows furrowed looking troubled as hell. He's about to give a sassy retort when Alex's eyes lock onto something.

"Force." Force looks in the direction Alex is looking before nodding with her chassis.

"Yeah, that's it. Use your metal manipulation to see if the bomb is made of primarily metal to then try and track it down, good idea Alex." Force praises, and with that Bucky's eyebrows raise, clearly impressed. Alex's glow dwindles to nothing like blowing on smoke, and with the tap of the bottom of her polearm against the tile floor a curved, beautifully engraved silver blade manifests to turn the polearm into a glaive. Alex looks to Bucky.

"Alright, it's down the hallway up here but we need to be stealthy. We lose the element of surprise who knows what these idiot's'll do." She approaches the corner of both halls to peek down it. Bucky tiptoes across to peek his head around the corner over Alex's to see two men with semi-automatic rifles guarding a door with a small window talking with one another, completely distracted.

Bucky raises his pistol, looking to Alex, and when she nods he peers around the corner fully, takes aim, and shoots both men in the head with perfect accuracy. They collapse to the floor probably having no idea what even happened.

"Nice shots." Alex praises, stepping from around the corner to look at Bucky with a smirk.

"Thank ya kindly."

They move down the hall, kicking away the rifles when they reach the end of the hall, before Alex peers into the small window. She scans the room before pulling her head back to look at Bucky.

"There were four guys that I could see, two tweaking with the bomb and two doing _some_ attempt of guarding it."

"They were really thinking they'd get away with this if they're such a small group."

"I'm sure they would have. The bomb is on the smaller side but probably could blow up the entire building and damage the surrounding ones. I open this door you aim for the guys with obvious weapons first, headshots or chest shots only. Quick and easy so we can just disarm the bomb, call the police anonymously, and get the fuck outta dodge."

"Got'ya. Ready whenever you are." Bucky says with a nod, adjusting his grip on the gun grip of the silenced pistol.

"3," Alex puts her hand on the doorknob.

"2," She adjusts her grip on the glaive, moving to the right side of the door.

"1." She twists the knob and pushes the door open, and in the brief moment of shock, Bucky shoots both visibly armed men dead. He then watches as Alex runs forward towards the men at the bomb, dodging a punch when she reaches. She shoves the man back with the bladeless end before spinning it around and stabbing said man in the chest. The other pulls a knife and tries to get behind her but he's stopped when Bucky easily shoots him in the head, the man crumpling to the ground in a heap. Alex looks at the body in shock, blinking a few times before looking at Bucky.

"Thanks." She huffs, Bucky giving a shy "no problem" before Force zips through the doorway to then stop at the bomb.

"Alright, Boss, let's get to work." She chirps, Alex nodding as she lifts her skirt and maneuvers around the slowly growing pools of blood to where Force is scanning the bomb's control panel.

"Whoever made this wanted it to be complicated to stop manually once it was started, but oh how far HYDRA is from _our_  technological advances. This is like 3rd-grade math, so I should have this cracked in about five minutes. Y'all just sit here and look pretty." Force says, then proceeds to get to work.

"We should probably get in contact with the police while we wait." Alex states, looking at Bucky for him to nod in agreement.

"Good call."

 

* * *

 

The police and bomb squad took 15 minutes to arrive, and it took ten minutes for them to clear out the building. They took statements from Bucky, Alex, and even Force, and agreed to keep Alex and Force's identities a secret from the press when they release a statement about the event. Force returned to her little hidey hole and the two _somehow_ managed to slip through crowds of people in order to avoid detection. They were now walking down a barely trafficked sidewalk in the opposite direction of the Tower to a diner Bucky recommended, Bucky holding Alex's heels in one hand while the other sits in the pocket of his slacks. Alex's got his blazer on and she walks along the curb with her arms out for balance. They're talking about anything and everything: the weather, how stressful their jobs are, Alex's growing assortment of plants in her home, etc.

"So, I'm curious about something." Bucky starts, Alex looking to him with a curious head tilt and a raised brow.

"What exactly can you do? Yeah you've got that elemental manipulation thing and whatever, that's cool and all, but some other stuff isn't adding up in my head."

"Well, _basically_ one thing I can do is I can control and manipulate the elements. Y'know, wind, water, earth, fire, wood, whatever. I can manipulate some parts of Light and Aether. Uh, I'm an omnilingualist who dabbles in zoolingualism, I can manifest a weapon that's connected to a specific item at will, and people who have mind powers can't affect me or try to mess with my brain either. Those are more hereditary abilities than anything. Uh, being "Cakeshi", a thing I can do is create armor for myself to use. Those are... what I'm aware of so far."

"... really? God, that's... a lot." Bucky stutters, Alex giving a tired laugh.

"You're telling me? I'm the one who has them, and I've been told as I get closer and closer to my next birthday _more_ are gonna manifest. I don't need them, man! These already make me tired enough if I use a bunch too quickly." Alex looks to Bucky to see him walking in a state of contemplation as they reach the diner. Bucky opens the door for her, Alex thanking him as she walks in. The place is almost empty aside from a few people sat at the bar top area. It has a 70's vibe, cream linoleum and bright colors, fire truck red leather booths and chrome lined tables, a jukebox at the far end of the room with a mass of colors glowing in a wave pattern to draw you in. Black and white pictures line the walls, some signed portraits while others are of the building in the prime of its time.

"Seat yourself, I'll be right out!" A woman with a Southern accent calls out from the kitchen, nearly drowned out by the sound of something sizzling. They seat themselves next to a window, the glass covered in condensation from the temperature difference inside and outside.

"I've been coming here since I was a kid, my mom was one of its first customers when it opened and she took my dad here after their first date." Alex says wistfully, looking around the place with a small smile filled with nostalgia.

"It's got a lot of sentimental value then." Bucky says as he picks up his menu.

"Oh tons. Working here was even my first job while I was in high school and college. Paid pretty good and I got a good amount of experience dealing with all sorts of people."

"And your mom was here when it opened?"

"Yep, way back in 1974."

"I don't... want to step on any toes, Alex, but Natasha found something kinda interesting and I've been meaning to talk to you about it." He's about to continue when an older woman looking to be in her mid-to-late 70s with a turquoise uniform dress and a white apron tied around her waist bursts from the doors to the kitchen in a flourish, salt and pepper hair messy and frizzy in a bun with bright red reading glasses perched on her nose.

"Sorry 'bout that, y'all. It's been a wacky night tonight, stuff's been breakin' all over the place." She says flusteredly, stopping at their table to pull out a little notepad and pen. They order their food and drinks and the waitress goes off to get their drinks.

"You were saying, Buck?" Alex asks, her head tilting.

"Oh-uh, nothing. It's nothing. We don't need to talk about it right now, it's not important." He replies, only to get a skeptical, narrow-eyed look from her.

"Oooooookay." She says, totally not believing him but letting it go for him.

"So, I wanted to talk to you about something." Alex says as the waitress comes and sets their drinks, a black coffee for Bucky and a Shirley Temple for Alex, on the tabletop in front of them. Making sure they're happy with it she moves back into the kitchen, and Alex's attention is back on him. Bucky takes a sip from the steaming mug as Alex pulls her straw from her wrapper and plops it in her drink.

"Shoot." Bucky hums, taking another sip.

"When do you want to do the procedure to get the pressure sensors?" Alex takes a sip from her fizzy red drink. Bucky sets his mug down on a napkin.

"I'm thinking we do it as soon as possible. Our schedules are pretty crazy and tend not to meet up much as is." Alex nods.

"As of right now, I can get you in on next Friday. Friday's tend to be my slower days so I would have time to do what I gotta."

"I'll have to check my own schedule. I know some of us are set to go on missions but I... wasn't really paying attention during the briefing on Thursday." He scratches the nape of his neck shyly.

"Not listening during important meetings, what would good ol' Captain America think." Alex tsks, Bucky smirking and rolling his eyes.

"Wouldn't be the first time he'd catch me zoning out. Those things can last for hours, and there's plenty of places I'd rather be."

"Oh? Do tell~" Alex coos, resting her chin on her hands with her elbows propped up on the table.

"Your lab is the most desirable area for me at the moment, if I'll be honest."

"Aw~! You just can't get enough of me, huh~." She teasingly coos, Bucky smirking with his cheeks flushing faintly.

"Something like that."

Their food came soon after, but that didn't stop their conversations. They joked, ~~flirted~~ , and got to know one another on a much more personal level. Alex even threw a fry or two at Bucky before he had to regroup back at the Tower so Steve wouldn't form a manhunt to try and find him.

 

But in the brief reprieve these two spent together just enjoying being able to breathe and relax, in the shadows of an alley across the street, glowing red eyes are watching the two unsuspecting heroes analytically.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My Tumblr: https://itsjustforce.tumblr.com/


	9. Double-Edged Sword

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long ass wait for this. College is nuts and I'm bad at writing filler so this chapter was a struggle and a half to finish. Hopefully, this is the last filler chapter for a bit. I actually enjoy writing this story, ya know?
> 
> Anyway, beta'd by ZeroEnderborn, the homie.

_It was dark where he stood, stars littered everywhere he could see, planets mere pinheads to their size. He faces a bloodied woman who rests sitting down, facing him with fear in her eyes and a glaive knocked away from her. In the back of his mind, he could recognize that glaive, but that thought is fleeting when up against the undeniable feelings of rage and betrayal._

_"_ _ **You've betrayed me for those**_   **creatures** **_for the last time, sister._** _" His voice snarls, him storming forward for the woman to try and scooch back. The effort is fruitless, for with his metal hand he takes her by the throat and lifts her up. She lets out a small choked sound, her eyes, indistinguishable now after all this time has passed, are wide and full of fear._

 _" **Brother, please. Don't-Don't do this.** " She chokes out, and his sleep-addled brain makes a connection that flushes ice water into his veins. _ **It's Alex.**

_" **If you won't see the errors of your ways,** " he tightens his grip, the sounds of her choking becoming louder and more prominent. Her face begins to turn red as she bares her grit teeth. " **t** **hen I must fix your mess for you. Without you.** "_

_Just as he crushes Alex's trachea..._  Bucky jolts awake, launching up to a sitting position gasping and covered in sweat. He's confused, yet gripped in the icy clutches of fear, its claws burrowing into his entire being like the talons of a falcon. Liquid falls down his cheeks, and when wiping them away he realizes the rolling droplets aren't sweat, but tears.

Now, that has him confused.

 

* * *

 

That morning, Alex is walking towards the door to her lab when she notices Bucky loitering outside the door in a t-shirt, sweatpants, and hastily tied up sneakers. It's pretty early, around 5 a.m., but still, she's quite surprised to see him.

"Bucky?" She asks, her head tilting in confusion. Bucky's head snaps towards her, and before she understands really what's going on he's **sprinting**  towards her and tackling her with a tight hug. Alex's arms are raised as she looks to him in shock, feeling his body tremble as he holds her close and keeps his head in the crook between her neck and shoulder.

"You're okay, you're okay, oh thank _**God**_ you're okay." He mutters over and over, trembling like a leaf. She then awkwardly hugs him back, a confused look paired with a smirk as she lets out an airy chuckle.

"Of course I'm okay, why wouldn't I be?" She asks, rubbing Bucky's back. His body gives a shutter and she hears him let out a small sob, and her expression sobers.

"Oh Bucky." She coos, giving him a proper hug and running her flesh fingers through his hair as sobs wrack Bucky's body. She soothes him as he cries, shooshing him and rubbing her metal hand over his t-shirt covered back. She cradles him for a handful of minutes, letting him cry out whatever he needed to while being there to soothe him. He eventually pulls away, sniffling and wiping at his face as he stuffily apologizes for his breakdown. Alex simply replies with, "Everyone deserves a good cry once in a while." while her metal hand rubs his flesh arm comfortingly. She walks him into her lab, pulling out a chair for him and getting him to sit down. Getting him some tissues, she pulls out a stool for herself and sits down as he blows his nose.

"You wanna tell me what's gotten you so shaken up?" Alex asks, Bucky hesitating before minutely nodding. Bucky takes one of her hands, needing the firm warmth to ground himself.

"Had a nightmare but... it wasn't like the ones I'd have of the memories when I was the Soldier. It was... different. It felt so _real_. I-I choked you out, crush-crushed your throat in my hand. I was so _mad_." Bucky whimpers, tears welling up in his eyes again. Alex gives a sad, sympathetic "oh, Bucky" before getting up and hugging him again. He grips onto her shirt, holding her tightly as he buries his head in the shirt fabric just above her breasts. She pulls away, cupping his cheeks and wiping away the tears rolling down his cheeks with her thumbs.

"I'm here, Buck. You aren't gonna hurt me. You never will. Okay? It was a bad dream, that's all." She says soothingly, Bucky leaning into her touch as he mutely nods.

"But I'm touched you wanted to make sure I was okay." Alex adds on seeming a touch suggestive, smiling so fond and soft at him. Bucky gives a small smile back before moving to grab another tissue, Alex's hands dropping and falling to her sides for her to shove them in the back pockets of her jeans.

"You're my friend, of course I'd want to." He responds as he plucks out a tissue and blows his nose again, missing how Alex's smile drops for a second before it returns back to the way it was, maybe looking a little more forced than before. There's a brief, yet (on Alex's side) _awkward_  silence before the door to Alex's lab opens. Alex and Bucky look that way to see Natasha strolling in, looking as unreadable as ever as she stops and looks at Bucky.

"F.R.I.D.A.Y. told me you'd be here. Tony's calling a meeting." She says, and Bucky seems shocked.

" _Now?_ "

"You know him, the man never fucking sleeps. He said it was important and we all need to be in the common room ASAP."

Bucky nods, standing up. Alex backs away a few steps to give him room, looking void of any emotion as she crosses her arms over her chest. Natasha and Alex lock eyes, Alex giving a polite nod and an "Agent Romanov", to which Natasha replies with a nod of her own. Natasha's eyes return to Bucky as he approaches her, and they walk out together with Bucky giving Alex a brief, "I'll see you later!" before the door slides shut. Alex sighs and sinks onto the stool she'd sat on originally, burying her face in her hands.

"God, Alex, what are you doing."

 

* * *

 

"Good! You made it!" Tony says, clapping his hands together. Half of the Avengers are still in their pajamas, bleary-eyed with coffee in their hands, while the others look much more awake.

"So, we've all met Alex by now, yeah?" Tony asks, the drowsy group giving their grumbled answers equating to "yes".

"After the whole "bomb at the gala" thing a week ago, I think she's ready to be voted on whether or not she should join. She's definitely showed she's got skills good enough to be in with us, so we're gonna do a vote. Anybody who thinks Alex should join, raise your hand." Wanda, Tony, Bruce, Vision, Thor, Bucky, and eventually Scott, all raise their hands, leaving Natasha, Sam, and Steve with their hands down. Bucky looks at Natasha and Steve in confusion, blinking repeatedly in disbelief.

"Majority rules. She's in. F.R.I.D.A.Y.,"

"Yes, boss?"

"Give Ms. Harper clearance to the Avengers floor and all the benefit areas that come with it, and let her know she’s in. Oh! And also let Fury know he'll need to talk with Secretary Ross to get the necessary paperwork for Alex to be officially inducted. Knowing Ross he’s gonna demand I watch after her, and probably meet her because he’s an asshole like that, so give her that heads up just in case.”

“You got it, Boss.”

Tony turns his attention back to the group once again. “We'll be having the first team training day with Alex in two days, so for those who weren't for her joining should get to liking her." Tony says happily, and with a clap he leaves them in the common area in silence.

"He wakes us up... at five in the morning... for _this_?" Scott asks, sounding absolutely _done_  with life.

"It's a Tony thing to do." Bruce groans out, taking a large sip from his mug.

"But... why didn't you guys raise your hands?" Wanda asks, looking between Steve, Sam, and Natasha.

"She's quiet, hard to read, and with that bomb it was very reckless to just go in like she did." Steve explains, and Bucky scoffs.

"I was _with her_ , Steve. The one thing she _wasn't_ , was reckless. She had everything planned out to the **letter**  as we were on our way to where it was hidden. She mapped out the placement of each person and made sure to keep it hush and not cause panic, while making sure to keep from hitting or damaging the bomb. That's not recklessness, that's just an example of her leadership qualities." Bucky snaps, crossing his arms. Steve looks at him with his eyebrows raised almost in shock.

"I get it if you're hesitant because you don't know her too well, or where her priorities lie, or what she's even _like_. But she's gonna fit in just fine, you'll see." Bucky defends, and Natasha looks at his defensive posture with interest, a perfectly manicured brow raised questioningly. Wanda smiles at him, bright and assuring, and Bucky stands a little taller, pleased with his defense on Alex's behalf.

 

* * *

 

Bucky and Wanda walk into Alex's lab to see Alex sitting facing a group of people looking at them thoughtfully as they talk about their opinions on... something. He spots Zero/Tony (he still hasn't talked to him and Alex about hearing her call him Zero), Jared, Jamie, who sways in their seat, and Mikhail. The rest of the people there are ones he hasn't met before, the craziest being a man and a woman sat next to each other holding hands. The woman is pale skinned with black hair that goes down to her hips, tied off a few inches above the ends with a purple scrunchie, and she has black colored fox ears and a purple tipped fluffy black tail. The man is more tanned than the woman, with long flame orange hair tied back in a ponytail, the ends ombre-ing to a dandelion yellow. He has flame orange fox ears, a majority of the right one seemingly having been bitten off. He has a fluffy dull orange tail tipped with a firetruck red color, and it swishes in annoyance.

"We don't know them! Why do _we_  have to deal with working with them just because _you_  got inducted." The fox man snaps, Alex's right eyebrow twitching.

"Because you all decided you wanted to continue with me as your leader when we held a meeting about me even _accepting_  and _going through_  the trial period. So, here we are. What y'all are gonna do is meet them and play nice, because we're going to be partnered with them now." The fox man glowers, his tail swishing angrily. Alex looks around at the group with her eyebrows raised.

"Any other questions?" She asks, crossing her arms.

"Am I still gonna pilot?" A woman with olive skin and glowing triangular markings on her face asks, Alex smiling softly.

"Every time a pilot's needed, I'll be putting your name in first. The Home Base Group are still gonna stay at home base unless your expertise is highly needed."

"Oh thank Gods." A man with messy dark blue hair, leaning back in a chair, says, sounding highly relieved.

"It's not like you were gonna do anything if you had to fight anyway, Avinious." A petite, cute looking woman with tied up brown hair with straight cut bangs, round glasses, and freckles. The blue haired man looks and points at her, his tired eyes narrowed.

"You don't know that!"

"You sleep most of the day and just laze around, dude. I think I have a good idea." She sasses. The group is a mix of murmurs and snickers.

"I-"

"She's got ya there, dude." Zero says with a smirk. Avinious plops back in the chair with his arms crossed, pouting. Alex snickers, rolling her eyes and shaking her head before her gaze meets Bucky and Wanda. Meeting Bucky's eyes she smiles, but Bucky doesn't realize how just how forced it is.

"Hey you two~" Alex chirps, the group in front of her turning their heads to look at the two of them.

"Uh, hi." Wanda says shyly, waving and nervously smiling.

"Wanda, Bucky, meet the MIB unit. Y'all, Wanda and Bucky." The people in the group either give a wave or a murmur of a hello (Mikhail gives a "Sergeant Barnes" and a nod in greeting), Bucky and Wanda greeting them in return.

"Ooooo, who are theeeeeeeeeey~? You're so preeeeeeeeeetty!" Jamie slurs, leaning forward and nearly falling out of the chair they're sat on. A blue C-PICT manifests next to Jamie's head, scolding him like a mother would as she uses her chassis to try and push him back to a normal sitting position. They go willingly, plopping back in a lounged position with a lazy smile spread across their face. The C-PICT turns and looks at Bucky and Wanda.

"Don't mind them, they're just... well they're just dumb and drunk if I'll be honest." The brunette with the round glasses gives a "facts" which causes Jamie to narrow their eyes at her and stuck out their tongue at her.

"That's enough, y'all. Jesus." Alex scolds with a laugh, Jamie pouting and folding their arms across their chest while the brunette simply huffs. Alex looks back to Wanda and Bucky, her right eyebrow raising.

"Now what can I do for y'all?" She asks, rubbing her hands on the fabric of her pants.

"Bucky and I just wanted to say congrats on being initiated. It's kinda been a while since someone's been inducted, I think the last person was Peter when Thanos attacked and that was around three years ago now. So yeah!" Wanda says happily, and Alex gives her a beaming smile that makes something in Bucky's stomach twist uncomfortably.

"Thank you so much! I'm really excited to work with you guys." Alex says sweetly. All of her attention is on Wanda, and to be honest Bucky really doesn't like it. Alex gives a shocked "Oh!" before snapping and pointing at him and Wanda.

"I don't think you guys have met the entirety of my unit yet!” She turns to the side and points out each person as she introduces them.

“You both know Tony and Jared, but Bucky’s met Jamie and Mikhail already. Mikhail is one of our healers, and is damn good at it, while Jamie is… well, Jamie. The tired-looking man with dark blue hair is Avinious, the man next to him with goggles, amber eyes, and long brown anime hair is Amber. The woman with the glowing face tattoos is Aria, our unit’s best pilot, and the woman next to HER with the round glasses is Valerie. She’s really our only reliable prophet, since Jamie has to be drunk to prophesize. And the fox couple is Moriko and Hairo, Moriko the purple fox and Hairo the red. They’re all… interesting… individuals, but they’re my family.” She says, Valerie giving an ‘aww’ as she makes a heart with her hands. Alex snickers and rolls her eyes.

"Well," she looks to the two Avengers. "Yeeeah. That's them."

She seems to awkwardly pause for a few moments, and after they say nothing she tilts her head down, scratches the nape of her neck, and looks up at them through her lashes.

"Is there... anything else?" She asks nervously, eyes meeting Bucky's slate grey ones that hold a look she doesn't recognize. Wanda nudges him in the side with her elbow, which seems to pull him from his stupor.

"Oh, uh, yeah! I, uh, I needed to talk to you about something." Bucky says, Alex looking at him inquisitively. He looks around at Alex's unit nervously before muttering out, "in private...". That seems to get her to look concerned, and she slowly nods.

"Uh, yeah. Yeah just... follow me." She says, pointing to the door of the lab before walking towards it, Bucky right at her heels. They get into the hall and when the door shuts Alex turns to him and crosses her arms.

"So, uh, what-what is it?" She asks nervously, her metal fingers drumming against the bare skin of her upper arm.

"So as you know we had a vote on whether or not you were ready to be inducted and, well, while you got the majority it wasn't unanimous."

"Really?" She asks, actually looking surprised as her head tilts.

"Results were 7 to 3."

"Who was the three? I'd like to know who I need to be able to sway." She giggles through her last statement, but when Bucky doesn't laugh she looks worried.

"Wilson, Romanoff, and Steve. You have fun with that."

"Wait, Rogers said no?!" She asks, her surprise catching him off guard.

"Uh... yeah. He said, and I quote, "She's quiet, hard to read, and with that bomb it was very reckless to just go in like she did.". I said the last part was bullshit."

She harshly scoffs, muttering "of course he'd say that." as she places her hands on her hips and shakes her head with a dumbfounded grin.

"You seem... annoyed." He says, really unsure of himself.

"Because coming from him it's hypocritical and a load of bullshit. He said that cause he couldn't think of a better excuse." She snaps, looking at him with angered disbelief in her gaze. She then turns away from him and begins to pace back and forth.

“I can’t BELIEVE him! The NERVE of this guy!” She mutters, running her flesh hand through her hair. It seems that her powers get a little out of control when she’s angry, because where she’s walking she’s leaving charred, steaming footprints.

“Uh, Alex?” Bucky asks nervously.

“Just because ONE practice went wrong when it was my FIRST GODDAMNED DAY he thinks I’m fucking inept for everything else.”

“Alex!” Bucky shouts, causing her to look at him seemingly annoyed. All he does is point to the ground at her feet, and when she looks down she lets out an annoyed groan and decides to sit down against the wall indian style, arms crossed and stewing in her anger.

“Fucking Rogers thinks he knows all since he’s older than dust, but ohhhh has he got another fucking thing coming at team training day. Student’s about to become the fucking master, swear to God.” She grumbles angrily, Bucky only getting more and more confused.

“Whaaat do you mean? Steve acted like he’d never met you before in the first briefing about you.”

“Seriously?!” She shouts, and that only seems to piss her off further.

“The fuck he doesn’t! He was one of my instructors when I was at S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy just trying to get _in_ to S.H.I.E.L.D. in the first damn place!” She shouts angrily, quickly standing up again.

“Fuck, I need to pace right now or I’m actually gonna fucking punch something,” She grumbles, picking her pacing up once again and muttering angrily. Her yelling has seemed to catch some attention, because Tony’s head and a bit of his torso peers out of the door of his lab, and seeing an angry looking Alex and that Bucky is looking around seemingly having _no idea_  what to do he decides to step in.

“I thought you’d be a bit happier that you’re in the big leagues now, kid.” He asks, sauntering over to her with his oil greased thumbs in the front belt loops of his jeans.

“One word. Rogers.” She snaps, and Bucky swears Tony _pales_.

“So… you found out about the vote thing. Uh, well I’m sure he had a good reason?” Tony asks, looking to Bucky.

“Brought up he thought it was reckless she handled the bomb.” Bucky explains, and Tony winces.

“That’s low, even for Rogers.” He says, and Alex gestures to him with a hand as a silent sign of “HE understands” while she glares up at the ceiling.

“Still, you should like… cool down. I’d like for you not to ruin the tile any more than you have, please.” Tony says, and Alex straight up glares at him.

“You’ll honestly be lucky if I don’t go up and personally shove one of Roger’s feet into his mouth.” She snaps, and Tony holds up his hands defensively.

Bucky smirks, “With the look he had when I left I’m pretty sure he wished he’d done just that.”

“Good, let him realize his fate.” She snaps, turning to the two men and placing her hands on her hips, her left hip jutting out a bit since her right leg is extended out sideways a bit.

“Is there anything else you boys have _neglected_  to inform me about before I start my first day Tuesday?” She asks, eyebrows raised looking entirely unimpressed.

“Nope. Just what I’d told you, and who I _assume_  was Bucky had shared with you.” He gives Bucky a pointed glare. Bucky just shrugs in response.

“Good. Now I’m going to go back in my lab, dismiss that meeting I was in, and promptly go outside to release some frustration. Laters.” She says, and walks away from them and back into her lab.

“I don’t think I’ve been this terrified for Steve’s life since he got pneumonia during the winter of ‘39.” Bucky says when the door shuts, and Tony hums in agreement.

“But _damn_ , if it isn’t going to be a spectacle to watch.” He replies, and Bucky gives a distant “mhm” to second that notion.

 

* * *

 

Monday rolled around way too slow for Tony’s standards if he’ll be honest. After hearing exactly what Steve had said when he’d left the room, he honestly couldn’t blame Alex for being mad. Sure, the two have interacted only a handful of times, and at first he didn't like Fury was giving her his job for Bucky's arm, but to be honest, she’s someone he’s come to respect, even if it’s just a small amount. After pulling Bucky into his lab, poking and prodding him for the more personal information he’d learned from Alex, he was able to find out some things that shed light onto this mysterious woman they’ve inducted.

As Tony suspected, the moment Ross got the request for the forms needed to officially induct a new Avenger he was immediately on his way from D.C., and like Tony had expected Ross would hear it was his idea for Alex’s seemingly different style of their two-week test drive and assign Tony as her boss/advisor thing.

She’d handled Ross far better than he himself would have, but again he also hates Ross so…

Anyway, she’d signed the appropriate paperwork and was given a specific form on a beige colored paper that Tony’d never really seen before, but something suspicious he noticed about Ross when he walked in was that he seemed… surprised… to find Alex sat there.

When all was said and done, Tony had elected to throw her a party after their team training day as a way to unwind and to celebrate Alex getting official, but it seems that said team training day would never actually happen after all.


End file.
